Hie ind0pmdmf CPC / PCW mag: Created on Amstrad k&yhMnfA f&r Amstrad users by AmsSrad Bttdicts
No.TO JULY 1986 £1.00
I
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BOOTING
. UP
CP/M
Shattering power from yo
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operating system,
a new s<
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MAGICKAL
MASTERGAME
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MAKING MUSIC
jiL^W«,ij.i
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^-page ployrng gyid^ to Iha best gon
PLUS
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ROMS & R0rv'30AI^DS«C0r^DOR 1
HARVE/ HFADBANGFR • ?iHOGUN
mB PILGRIM • MEWS •LETTERS
CQIVlPcTrnCNS tAMD MUCH MO^E
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'imagine Software ( i 984], 6 Centr^f Street
W^ncnester M2 5NS, T^f: 06 1 33-5 393*3 Tejex: 669 ,. .
Imsgtne Software fs avaifabfe from:
OUmmni. L ask vs. Rumbelows Greens Spectrum Shops and all good dealef
AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986
JULY SPECIALS
7 Tli« ne^V Edlitor - Matt Kicsholaon siepg inio Pete
Coimor*& shoes and lodks forward to & br ighl futuje with Arnold
and Joyce,
22 B noting up CP/M - fiuppUed tr^ wiDr all ih&
Amatiad disc machmes, Ab CP^ operatEivg system can unlock
(he p0W^t i>f your computer . We supply the key with this new
ieii^, part one starts h^r^.
45 Absolute BepiniierS » Andy Wilton move£
on to part tlur«B of our guid« to programming in Bflsie, wieh a
look at hi-res gr^pbicA.
too Spin dizzy CSuide - CanUg ei to the Creiceni
Moon? what you n&ed u our fuB play:
Mmstergame.
playiiig gind# to LhiB ckssic
88 Fair light IMtup - The whole ci the caiiUe
rnapped out before your very eyes.
HOT REVIEWS
30 Laser Genius » Bogged down in machine ^Ode?
This padicage will find those bugs fast.
34 Making Music - Make Arnold sing for his
supper with Minstrel or Music Bok.
46 S ho gun ~ You've read the book, youVe seen the
Oim, now play the game with Virgin's maBteipiece.
47 Star quake » Romp your way through 312 caverrm,
48 Harvey Headhanger - Happy houx head-
aches with Harvey and Hamish - a truly original game.
S4 Heavy on the Magich - pagrun loveii
•verywhere! AA's done it at last! They*ve made an adventure
HlitergiJTieE
62 Bombjaclf ■* Additrnv^ bouncing bomb disposal.
62 Eguinox ^ CqIouiM arcade puzzling in a disused
asteroid ncune.
JUICY OFFERS
81 Win! Win! Win! - With an aa cotnpeiitioii.
96 Mail Order « stacks of juicy orrers with rr«« gifls
thrown in F
98 Special offers <■ Save youiaelf a [oitujie!
Minerva database , Ariior'a Prolext. Spell and Merge, Baiman.
Mexico '86 and games from Gargoyle and Vortex at cut pricv.
104 Fr^e Wiil^etK! « G^iafreftThinei, Joyaiickor
Pu«i Cover for your Amstrad iJ you atibsc^ibe fo AA her^.
ACTION REGULARS
7 Ed* Line's — Aiukouncemeiits. engagemefits, and all
that's new in Sunnjf Soifwrset^
8 Re Actions -• seven pagAs of yoiir views, news, pleas
and problema^ featUTing Problein Attic, lor those lechmcal
probl^Kis,
19 Ant Scene — Latesi news on the Amstrad front. Will
they lamidh a PC compatibJg? dh&dk thes« pages.
26 Plug -Ins » Andy WiKon looks al two Rom boards
and the lateat itom software.
30 Serious Softwrare - Databases Miagjd Fil«r,
Data Gem and Caxton'a Cand4>r 1, pliia two books lor the PCW
range.
71 Adventure Games - The Piigjim looks ri
some hot new adventtues, and all ihat's new m the adventurer's
world.
77 Type-Ivift "» Hc^w to mimi^ th@ Comitiodore Amiga
B2 Hi 'Score -Have you beaten the bes^
84 Cheat Mode — Beal the game with tips and pekea.
100 Charts - Your favouriles.
^ Lfc
M l
:. :;.4^^t/
-}n one! "'
OL'i C'N^efylhing ^rx^unii, ^ even- t^py^e/.a
HAP
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SPECIAL UVEl
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8-95
t iTFbsaJ £h^ flim but tw. got f^
Bt! ithe acton here... in feet tf
Thofrr eWf wannd /n^ke fl^mtxj 5£rites
B^cH^ii they have to do j5 fdm me in
^Ihn on thi5py5ticK i picHed up my
machine gun, wipGdouthBtfih&Jungie
yjfth my eHpi05h/€ wsr head, (that's
not my'bmmiX ^u-f t^^ iooh-out
postJu3t k&^5 on zapping me —
Hf get him newt time round.
i hsvefft^ot to the chopper yd...
iVe got to get my 3Ct together^
'ifTham PMfsaw myi^st
Mempt ItU only be SOOd for
Ramix> CaJTfes on LaL
If
fr*
Mu i&r^i hi
Cfccan Software Limit
& Central Street Mandiesca- M2 SNSTebphone: 061
VJAHNERHRC^ ISC 'flS4
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S33 Telex: 669977 Ocean G
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ADvenruRe
The imazjng, combined t&tl and graphi a adventure generatCMT enabfes
youto produce fast,compactadventuregames with the minimum of effbrtand
the maximum of creat I vi^. Stunning graphics can be created quickly and easily
with the powerful picture generator that has many features mctudirtg:-dot
drde,efast*cline,eJiipse,fa5t fill,shadirvg, step by step review, easy editing and
the ability to merge pictures.
The comprehensive, intelligent commar«f inteipretercan handle compfet
senteri<]e5 and multipte input commands. There is also an extenswe text com-
pression facility that allows you to produce far more detailed and numerous
location descriptions. Plus a full function editor, automatic word formatting, a
logical command interpreter and an abbreviated Input acceptance facility
So unieash the power of your imagination now with The Graphic
Adventure Creator, for your Spectrum, Commodore 64, BBC 8 or Amstrad.
Available from all leading retaifers or direct from Incentive on 0734 591678.
INCENTIVE SOFTWARE LTD. 54 London Street. Reading RG1 4SQ.
rplease rush me, THE GRA PHIC
I ADVEIVTURE CREATOR ff^l
n Commod or e 64 C^mI I
D Spectrum D&BCB OAmstrad
D Cassette £22,95
G Disc £27.95 (Ail formats «K<«|rt Spectrum)
I lendoseCheque/POfor£
I or please debit my Credit Card
j NO
I Name
J Address
I
II
Amstrad Action
Th^ OW Bam
Brunei Precinct
Som^rlon
Somerset
TAll 5AH
Teli045S-74011
EOfTOR
Matt Nicholsoa
SOFTWARE EDITOR
Bcsb Wade
TECHNICAL EDITOR
Andrew Wilton
ART EDITOR
Trevor Gilham
ASSISTANT ART EDITORS
George Murphy
Jane Toft
PUBLISHER
Chris Anderson
PUBLISHING ASSISTANTS
Diane Tavener
Jan^ Fajrmer
ADVERTISEMENT
MANAGER
Mike Carroll
<2^ 1-22 1^92
COLOUfiOHlGlNATfON
PHINTfNG
DiSTftfaUTlON
feWiox^? Pi ess. 334 BnxjDn
Koud LoiidonSW^TAG
i.T',i'\- I III ■■ ri 1 ; il^^r; ■?.■"; Jli-:
Ai:]itr-?fw;t T^3Jj:«-L't\ . i;!.i:-t:
'^y Mr J dC]
This Issue
And a pricked i^ii@ il i^ loot Aa usual Bob has Waded mto neirly
35 games, and is auQormg badly bom Joystick Claw. Master-
game, for the first time eveip is an adv^nnire: Hmyy on the
M^gick* But take a look at HMrv^y HGadbangor roo - it nearly
b&came Maemrgaitie. White you're ai ir, Shag^ii is just over the
page. If Trevor had had his way H would have b«en Master-
game. And that's just scratcMn? tht iuifac^^
Fans of fho PUgiim wUl be glad to soe that he has aiagger^d
back from hi? monihly q^est with more goodies. Five pages iiom
[he quill. Including ihe latest from LeveJ 9.
For the more srtidious our Cov^er fltory kiuncties a new
s^ri&s thar, over the next months, ml] reU you hour to make ih^
most of CP/M. Ajid for those of you into expanding. Andy looks
at Ttom boards. These handy add-ons allow you to use Rom
software oven faster than a dise drive and with a hodt t^i other
advantages too. Also catching Andy's attention wa£ Lss^r
Genm:^, a powerful madhine code dflvelopment syslsm for *%1]
you hackers.
Meanwhile Ihe Art Team were buay producing playmg
guides for those of you lost in Spindizzy or Fair/Zgriir, and you
hav£ been turning out plenty of letters, playing tips, hj-scoTedi
and review^-
LdsT but no( least we've gel plenty of apecial offers,
subscription deals and competitions. This issue starts hero.
Fage Bottom
Winners
Rc^m^rthber Ihe competiliofi w«
rem Tn our Wml#r Fftues otktfig
f«r IrtvisnHve su^gesHom for the
lint* ptiroses of the bottom of our
pcig&sl Well, w^ were ifiufidoS*d
y*t^ replies^ many of which hqwo
olreod^ oppfroi^^. Afier much
deep rtioyght v^e ^ove d^ckied
on f+i-^ie as tti# wirmers!
For dol^i 40 y eiiioyrfk«nt.^^R*a4
1^4 fflQi wtth byl« J Choprnqng
Granthoni, Lincj.
1l*s « p^icli...Ld cwme d# la
ct»m» P G WorrolL Ayr, fju|i
•on^ of o very iofkg fpsH)
A«d thi».,.Of rtl kill yoi^ Sorry
A £25 ^oych*r for loftwrnre hss^*
beefi te^t to these fccky winners.
Incoming Id - Pctrt 1
Here J Arrrdr /jiv sij^d, couirAry io
ihe impression that you imghi
hsve gai irom my picmre in the
May issue, / do - ms you can seB
i^mh my hsir occasiorr^IyJ
Senously ihoiiffh, I am now
sitting m Pete's old chMir Mnd
iockia^ foiwAid fo a bhgMf fu-
ture with AA. As Editor ofWhikt
Micro? / wstchsd Amstr^d com
put&Ts rise from be^mg the new-
comer an the scene to vniuAUy
domiimfjng the home computer
market. And i^en he laundied
ihQ FCW825S. tuuimg the siuaU
business market on i^ hssd. He
noiv shows every sigit of doing
th e AAme to thB PC market.
Amslrad Action }ws done
preny well loo. In my view it is
on& of the most colourful user
msgs on the mMrkei and ^tAnds
h^^d Mof shouJder^ over th0
competition. But then I am
biAsed.
One of the leasons for the
success of the Amstr^d micros is
their flcxibihry thfty mwike *i
mean games machine but have
business faft^r mIJ - we l^e
them!), make music, writQ
powi^rfuJ pzagrams, and a host
of other applications. Over ihe
coming months Amatrad Action
will reHecf al! of ihis and more.
Uitwtateiy though it is yo^i
you want to toad
And all Irom Sutmy Some-
rset. It cenainjy m&kes a change
from London town, and a very
pleasant one too.
CARTOONS!
What happened to the earEoona
ihen? Send us your cartoons and
you might see ihem in glorious
black and lArhito on those post-
ino pages. Send Lhem to Trevor
GiHiam at the address on this
I>age - if he like# ihern he'll uKe
them.
Help US helpyoy
Let tis know what you^ve got,
what you like, and what yon
want. Fill in onr Questioii-
naire on page 102 and yon
cDuld itfin a voucher worth l^£i
and help ns give yon a tetteif
mag.
Th*^*«*wkidmw™ AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 I
S^ven whote pages of ielfers! But we're certoinly not
complcFining. There's plenty oF con1r&v£rr$y, pleas For
club details {including fhe 'No-Joy* Fmiernify!)^ support
for the besieged 464, and plenty m&re.
And 'Problem AHic\ lounched IqM months seems
to have taken off with a vengeance. Got problems with
Pokes? finding they don^t work ^th disc-bosed
gomes? Resd Problem Attic. If you donH find the
answer to your problem there then write to us^ Th«
combined brainpower of A A might be able to come up
with the soluliori.
Finallyi please don^t send stamped addressed
envelopes with your letters. I^m afraid we con^t answer
your problems individually ^ weVe to busy producing
Am^trad Action! If your problem h of interest it'll be
pMbllshed ir! the next issue anyway.
The address for your problems, objeetionsi eon-
gratulatfotvs, tips and views is:
R^AcHort^ Amstrad Acttort, Thm Otd Bom, Somerfon^
Somenet TA 1 1 5AH
Save the 4641
U the excellent CPC464 is under
threat as mudti as you and
everyone else makes it out to
fco. Si© tijTL^ has com^ wMti wo
ought to (hittk about setting up a
^DONT KILL THE «4' prsfiflure
group.
Oavid PLner
nmyei„ Mfddleiex
li is v&ry diSicull to say at this
stsge whethmr Alan Sugar will
drop fihe 464^ Jr h$s $oid TOjry
W0U md i$ h^ins h^Ainly sup-
pcrt&d hy scitwRi^ haas&s and
p&TipA&Tai manulsctur&rs shke,
bar h's puzctm^e ofSindmi wif/
imdoubredly I^^d 10 seme sort
o£ *rsficiiaJisauon' m the near
future, I'm sui^ he is aware of
tA& I&y^lty thm ajo^c? iowArds
Utile Arnold, ijur perh$ps we
$hQu2d sil wriW 10 htn ^ywsy?
I wouM certainly prefer to
hmve R 4B4 to r Specfnim of any
kind Any dsy, but then I aia
hiasedl
Hype bubble
I wish we were bacit in 1983
compxitex^wise. Voii know,
games going fox £3 a shot. Not
like today when you have iiJi-
otiginal. boting games, packed
m huge juxik cases and cqsfeg
at least S^.9S aadh. Games of old
were packed in comparatively
plain, itoimaJ-sised cssselte
cases, but inside onjc would £md
wacky, original and lasting fan.
I atill like to load up the old
classic fet'Pac now and ll^en.
NoWn aU Ultimste can produce
are ajcade-adveiimres. ail
baaed on the nanie idea.
A3 th^ monthi> of BS ticlced
by and the real computer boom
began we realisod that the days
of our huifihle Vies wsTe num-
bered. In came the Spectroid,
StcJcy-fonr and more recently
the Amoplftt, With them came an
odd phenomenon known ^ 4i-e
hype bubble- Thi$ i^ (ill^ with
hoi air emanatlTLg irom the
glossy adverts and flashy pack^
a^ng ihaJ can be seen on the
^qIv^S of high ^tr^et fitor^ like
W H Smith and Boots. All these
stores a]re interested in is the
qu^ntir/ Of advertising and the
amount Of discount they can giet
for buying big numbers of a
game. They are not interested
in the qudity of the games, after
all they don"l pJay them do iheyT
A3 happened in the video
business the computer hype bu-
bble vAlI butat. The eBetn^ will
be as follows^
1. The high street stores wiU
drop computera qiiiciker th^
you can say 'Oh God, noi Manic
Miner pan 792". Th^y have no
loyally to computers or to soft*
WAr# hoi«eft-
2 . Ocean wil] go bust.
3- Realtime , Llamasoft and other
■iniilaj &m«ll(i5h) sofiware com-
panies will get The wide sprend
success they deserve
4- Withoiii WHS etc, gamea will
become cheaper (no need for
the estra profit which they take).
i reckon Oie bubble will 90
bang and bury the ooinpiiier
boom in laLe Auhin^ of ihis
year.
Rlk The Rodent
EdllO^r * *Way of the Rc^de!lt*
{Smalltimit mag thht no-one
ritads}
Citznnori Oxoa
Cc^j)Tr0v&r$ia}, ir/t«H / w^uld
disagree with you on tpro points.
Firstly, what about the Master-
ironic games or Firebiid's Sil-
ver range? Pl^nry of exc^U^iif
gain&s rhezB for onJy £1.99; just
one example being 'Harvey
Headb^mger\ an AA-Rsve Om
month. On your second pointy I
don V reinejrL&&r the High Street
shops droppmg die video
phenomenon like a hot potato, I
don *t r&m^memb0r th^m
droppinff video a j Ajif
8 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION Prcbibiy..
Moaning Minnies
First t muBl say how mega and
ultra fantastic the magazine is- (If
I get a free tape I'll have any
except Antsoft tapes.)
To ihe nexl point Why do
all ihe 6S4 owner* h*ve to moan*
They're af it in every issue ! see
of AmsTfad Action, I wonder if
the 8356 owners will be doing
the same. 1 think ihey all should
ffhtit-up and be thanldul they^re
gol a computer with S4K» which
is a lot bette? iim\ 4«K or 32K. I
haven^ even got a disc-drive
and I'm noi complaining.
Oh, by the way, befoie t
forget: are you giving any more
free g^mM away? I got Kimg Fu
and Number One, and then 1 got
Ihe Covenant, but what f think Is
wrong is that you put ihe price
lip 10 £1.50, The game was sup-
posed to be ireet to why ttie
ejcTra 50p?
Anon
BridUngrloUt U Etm^eratde
Mind your Ls ond Js
f must say that I feel the Coven-
ant is exceUent and as of yet t
have onJy ^een about six lo-
atLOfu^ roll on the other 250. 1 am
equally pleased with the other
demo games on the lape. What
a breakthrough, you gpetid
£LSG on a magazine and get five
ganues as wei, 1 aak myselfi m
AA going to do for the maga^n^
world whar AJ an Sugar has done
Tor lh« hoine compurer
industry?
Well done for an excellent
publication, this is the only AA I
have ever purchased, but it cer-
tainly will not be the lajst. One
last poini, 10 SAVE a game &om
wthin Covenant yOu press 'S' as
per the instructions, but you
have to press X' to load a saved
game and not "Y ee was printed.
Mr ST Woodford
Worthing, Susaex
Thaitks for the tip^ ^trry aboat
the mi^rintf snd I don Y fhiitk an
extra ^}p if foo much to ssk for
£v0 Qjclra gsmes, either!
-Av^j^
Customer disservice
Have yoii naiiq^d how sofrvv^re
pricefl saem !« be climbing
higher all the lime? The norm
on the Amsii^d used to be £8.99
bul now i! has tm&n to £9.9S.
You wouJd thiiik that wilh the
increa^ in prices there would
be an increase m customer ser-
vice, but ihis is iiot always the
case, as [ have lecenlly found
onl.
I hav^ jusl purchased Inior'
dictpr Pito^by Supersofi, which i
ordered rrom a computer olub^
the norrnal piice being £17.95.
Only one side of th* tape would
load^ so I wiroltr to SuporsofI
asMng if I should reluiD it loi
replacement. 1 r«oei¥#d a nmeSl
«Up of p^p^r with thft f^llomn^
aiwnrer. "The program on the
reverse side of Uie csj:sette is
(he same aa the rtrsi tide - as
Long ajs one aide worka^ there 1g
no need to havo the tepe
replaced*.
Considering the liigh price
you would think thfey would
tjeat their customers better tJusn
that. Both aides may be the aame
but if Maaterliomc can produce
tapes wjlh two working sides, at
thoir pncts, Ihoti surely anyone
can. Needles to say 1 won't be
buying from Supeisoft again „
Thanks for thg beat
Acnstrad magazine on the mar-
ket. Long may you reLgn
supreme.
JLtl&n Mayors
Cwmbtafit Gwetit
Fou'vie 9^1 3 pvmi, but you've
^o got a workmgfgame.
Support yourPilgrlml
1 personally prefer Adventures
to Shoot-em-ups, although
there's noihing wrong with
th^m- But J like Advicntujes and
[ call out 'Give the Pilgrim mote
space'. 1 got ^o fed up \ put the
giey matter to woik t've done r
rtfWKW at AA, comparing Action
Test With the PllgEim:
Average no, pages in AA -
112.4
Jtv^ragie no. p^qs^ in Action
Tes(-2La(34J%>
Average &o. Pilgrtm pag^s - $S
(T.4%Jf
As fott can aee, adventures
don'l do «o well! Even the ads
g*i more pwgpevi 1 ^gxee there
are more 'Shooi^m-upa' than
adventures, but that is no
excuse. It mjght be better if
Cheat hkKle covered adven-
tuLres, but it doesn't.
My comments arc not direc-
ted ai Bob Wade i^apeciajly, but
TO him ] say Shov^ over aitd
grve FUgnm room to breach r
Apart Crom this fault youf mag is
lib. iiOiig may you Uv@ and
Ooft^t ktte€k cofinpiittfrsi
Tlui letter i« addre^Qse^ to all
tbbse p«ople who Iq^oqk cfom-
put^rs for ihe fact that ohiidr^n
only play gai^^i on them ^d
gain no real beneflr Juai: sit bAck
and think at>oul Ous.
I ha^r^ t^fro foung children
(aged seven and Eva) whct
6fijoy piayiag g^ucuea that w&
brva bought, lathef thajt leajn^
ing about piogramming and
making up (h«ir o^vn giim^. I
am no longer boshered by this
b$cau£« I h^ve found that
playing the g^m^^a ha« had dte
following effect*^
L U h*s improved their reading
«^bfflty, vooabiilarr ^d BpeUi^g.
2. it expands thasr imagination
both off and ob th«? computeif
Desperately Seeking
Soft wo re
Does anybody know anything
about the Sega gfijnos Muck
Rogers or Spy Htujlei? Accord-
mg to tho klest Amsoft
catalogue they are 'New Re-
leases '^ [ haven't seen them in
ihe shops and 1 don't know any-
one who has. Also has anyone
seen the game FRAK! fiom
Ardvark? Has it even been re-
leased on th^ Amstrad?
Last month Stephen Jonas
(no rela^on to me) asked about
bindera. i know several people
who would appreciate binders,
including mo.
Rhys Jonei
PelejbOf^ugh
Bud news Vm alrsid the BegA
games are ^li'/J nor re^dy, aird /
prosper.
Paul NlcheUs
Hoddesdon, Herts
Come onf You 're moaning aboul
over six p^ges devoted fo the
PiignmP Th^r^ ^j-enY ntiany
mugs that give that much
coverage to ^dve^iures - and /
would pomt out that Uus monl/E s
'MHSleigam^'is an advenAJTO-'
[some of their high score me^-
a, It has £nipioted their hand
andefy^co-ordliialiors. .
4- PiniUy, it isiamiliflEijaing them"
with corctpiitera^ whJch can only
bfi good tot the future.
Having aatd al! tbAt I would
^1 ^ike^ tQ obtain edncationfti
«oflT»w$ f^x the:m, but cahnai
gfrd much availabye (perhaps
you codd help with bjx arHcle
on what'^ aioiind ^i the
4^meftt?)
UnHl then I'm mpire Omu
happy ro lee them play^g
gamea.
K«fttiTods]
doubt fhey wiii be tai a hui&
wMe yet. Much the same app-
lies to Frak. Jiiusott have the
Tights for Sega games en ATn£>Id
jjj thts coisntry.
Binders lor AA are still not
avmtsble, but ax<3 bomg m^d&
up and will be en
offer in our pages
in the next issue
oi so.
Otk0r p^rmitM,^ fake^^t^i
We have already" d^sn^ a survey
a¥ailab}e tor ediic^Juig Atii<?M,
in ou£ April ifisSS issue. U you
w&iit a copy, s^nd a ^&quG for
£L3& to 'Bai^ isme^' At the ad-
dress in the £rcnt of the
Mctn without Joy
As founding member of the 'No-
Joy' group p that ss the 'Am^lrad
owners who haven't got round
to geltkng a Joystick' group, [
would like to offer my program
to other monibors oi tho group
who would like to play your
Batde of Britain Demo in your
May [amte.
On my 0128 only one joy-
Btidc, JOY 0, is supportod by a
Port, JOY ] is covered by the
keys 'S'. '«', 'R'. T' and "C^
respectively.
My progiam redirects the
jumpblock oddro^s at &BBS4 to
a little louhne which checks JOY
] instead of JOY 0. This happens
because, sfter calling the joy-
^ick chock routine in lower
RQM, the L regislei contains
JOY 1 info and the ii register
JOY 0. The demo program then
uses the L register msiead of the
H
|MWor«ler
f axehami Hanls
1 ! TAPE
2 FOR f=&450e TO 1.4509 i READ d$iPOKE bUA
L C"t"+d*3 2NEXT
3 POKE «.BS24,8iC3 SPOKE ScBB25>0 sPOKE &BB26
,8.45
4 DATA E5,CD,7,45j7D*EJjC9,CF,E5,9D
5 RUN^DEriOAJR.BAS"
K If the letters editor in bis
infinite wisdom decides to:
a)Prin! ihi^lotior.
b) Provide some form t>f re-
muneration for the many hours
of thinking and key-tapping in-
volve in Ita production,
then 1 win gladly form the Xota
of Joy"^ ^^<^P^ That is iho
'Am^trad owners who wangled
a joptick out of Amatrad Action'
group. ( know the initials don't
match. Put it down to artisitic
lioenoe.
tm sure at! membej^ of the 'No-
Joy * Cliib wrilt b^ v*jy gwate/itl . .
►
'n«b«i™,i„ih.«tid AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 9
^^yx^^
lt«pciiring Arnold
At last we've convincifid Dad m
after aU M leads your y^oj Ate
Mej^ a^ well, til's the ordj me he
ursdarfi^pc3^t^
We iKiBJf mm jynatrad Ac-
doti hAs ^ual go! to b« Uie b«vt.
tl'fl written ID g^od old We«l
othiM Ajnjjtrad mage. With idl
the lechMcal jargon w* i&om^l-
ime^ wonder wtto buyB f^sm!
How ahoiit giving loadinp
tkntts m sroiK reviews? Alao. a*
e^npugli for ih0 odd protoleitm t^
d&v^opr GApeci<iLiJy with load-
ing* v?Iirjaol give «om^ infojttt.-
they af 6. typical caste etc; o^
even Dnf soJwIiOiis. Show your-
self to iM -^lib magasne t^t t^
aUycaj^-
Panl ud Cl«re Wmdna
in our :&£Si>tt» t^ get yoa the
/!of ^ws>^ TGpr&^nt&Uif^ of th^
doftif JinZiy T^e^ i^tf quMMy at
a prc€iact tfjilwr - Mffi^ if /o
i»9/ that y0u w^ UMuMlIy ?mv0^
time to ma^e yourself a a^ ^
Wf^ ^r&^waT0 I?/ iti^ odd
on ti^^ 4^4, rdthcagh if 141 TmTly
Ita w^ pTobl^ttm ii /a ti^vjl^y Iwjr
lij go thxot^ffh the shop wiierm
you bottffh^ ihi* xtmi^Mh^,. 'wJ^a'
wjlL^M^j fir it themsaivm or
send it if^ck to Amai^dd. If yoa
stiU h^ys proM^sms, Aiti»ttAd*^
CdjTfditi^r S&zvice mtmb^ is
(0377) SSOBSSi If you /utw pro-
■Momt^^^rthat^tuskm?wt
Call for dubs
I wag diBappomied not 10 91^
my riamc l>essde the progiamt
for ttanaferniig iiu<^ Itdv^n-
tyjes to disc - Colossd Adven-
ture, Remm to Eden and The
HobbiE although 1 did appeax
in ihe Lords of Advenhire
column, I didn't escpecl payment
for the piograjns but at least I
thoughi you ongiit to hMve given
a little credit for all the hard
work!
I wQuld liJk« 10 get in (ouch
(luough your p^g^ with aay
others like me who like lo traiis-
fer adventures 10 dUc^ a^ L frnd
ihis as much of a challenge as
[he adventure itself.
And how abaut a lisi o(
Amfitrad clubs There muat be
lots of Aitmnad owners in the
Binrurighaim area but f don't
know of any dubfi. If there is a
club nearby could ^omeoiie teU
me. Of mayb« iniere^tcd people
could write to me with the idea
of forming one.
Alex Aird
nS Iromfurd Road
Hodge Htll
iifminghaifi
B36 3HR
rae Pilgrim is giowelliug before
Ac appropriate god bs we
If you have ^my success wiih
cfui^s, do let us luiow, and d
anyone ejb^ vran^ ft? I^vom-
mend a club, wrim and t&U us
With the fall n^me and address
for ofh^r pi^tennal mtimbtirst
PROBLE
Disc pok«s
I have recently purchased a
61ZB, and 1 must say ihaf I am
moat impressed with iho load-
ing speed and the amounE of
memory ?(oi:age space the
Amsli^d discs can hi^ndle,
naturally enough, J went
straight out and bought a load of
disc software, completely disre-
gEuding the lape rang^, My nexl
idea was to get some briUbaiK
maga^tnep with some poVes or
hints for the games i bought.
and some leviews of future soft-
ware. 1 know this sounds like
sucking up, but your mag was
the only one on the shelf worth
{^rvBn CQ-Tmidering,
UnJoitundlfrly t 900II dis-
crovered chat, although the hints
were great, I coaildn't use Sny of
the pokes for my gam^. Is
there any way you can suggest
(without spending a lot of
money on hardware, or re-
buying my games as tapes) that
1 could apply these pokes to my
disc?
Mark SnlizELBn
Kin.gr^er
J am afrmjd th^t pokes io^ tape
g^jnes Just don't work on diMC
versions. The reasons Axe quite
complex, but are basically
down to the different kinds of
protection routines used with
the <MaiBnt foim^t^. Most fape
gmme pokes work by ^st of all
getting roimd the (ape loader,
^uicf then poking the sppropri-
^fe vAlues Into the appropiiaie
addresses to 0ve yon infinite
Jives, or whatever. Uhforfmis^t^
ly Jt has to be done differently
with disc-based games.
However, if any ol our more
ambitioiUf readers would cdjie ^o
send lis pokes for disc-games
they would matke a lai of re-
^dcrs happy, and oould win
ihcizii^oives glittering prizes!
Not quite a
Computer Widow
Vm a computer widow, Arnold
IS to blame, but you've got to
tajse your sliStre^ Wlien he's not
ryping in your hsrings he's read-
ing AA.
Vm on a loser unless you
gel mc aiwweis to ihe following
-fast:
I. Cheat modea: He's got the
che^t mode for TSAM JSW, but it
doesn't work on the €1^ disc;
version. Can you help?
3. He spent 3 days doing a one-
fingered job Oil Music Coni-
po^^r in your Feb issue. Great!
Chopin in the makmg., J Until he
found out that it didn't explain
how to incorporate h in the
program ha'a designed. You
save it as a binary tile, but then
what?
3. And then you qav& Mm The
Coveriant freebee AUD the in-
stmctionE on how to transfer it
to disk. It doesn't. That was ano-
ther 2 o'clock m the morning
saga.
Come on AA let's hsre
some answers.
Incidentally 1 -wonder if
there are aivy other ynves out
there who have become com-
puter widows. Is this a job for
Sugarman?
It Harris
CasteFboxy
You sound fairly convetsant
^bout Arnold for a computer
widow! Perhaps you have
caught the bug just a te^isy
weensybit?
How^verr down to the seri-
ous stuff. On your Urst point, 1
simply rafer you to I^/^rk
SuIInian 's letter above.
Your second point is m little
fpore complex. Using such «
bmazy file in another program
depends on yout ingenuity as a
programmer. If you feel up fo if,
examine the listmg of Music
Composer to discover the form
in which ih^ music is saved, and
go on iroju there, tf anyone else
Ms played around with this, do
Mi us knQw what you've cozne
up with.
Finally, you are indeed cor-
rect - the type-in for loading
Covenant on to disc didn't
work. Abject apologies for the
sleepless nighr, hut we h^ve
published a listing that ^orks in
our JunG issue on pjige ei^ht.
Hope that solves the problem.
/yj.
L12
10 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION *M4*r
UXl'ft^tKlil
ATTIC PROBLEM ATTIC
Yoji^/c^ier (^ue^icm aiswmd
\
Dots before your
Aa a regrul&i reader of AA, I find
mjrself wilting to you begging
tor KELPt pl€3se, if you oi any-
01^ oaji- After many gomas aoid
hours ofi £;a^r£ W^^ my wife
dacided to iry your 'Cheat
ModeV JUas to oiix shocks
ey^ all aho got was nothing.
After typing in and numixig Hie
'Qieat Mode' up cune 'press
play thew any key. This site did.
The game atarted to load, tlien
afteF 20 or M on ttie counter it
stopped ^ The scxeen went
Mack. Then white dots started
to appear qa the screen at regu-
Ui intervals, slaxting top left
and gomg to top right. Then
going down a line. Th6n a^roas
screen again, all the way down
to the bottom right. Then back
to ihe Top agam, until tin& screen
was full of white lines going
do^wn the screen a regular
Intervals.
So the machine was turned
off then switched on again, ihe
tape was rewound and started
agajn without udng ihe 'Cheat
Mode' prograiti- Up i?aine the
prompt loading Sabre Wuli
Block \\ then 'dick' the screen
goes blade and it starts aU o?er i
ag^in. The dots stan again, QH \
goes the machine, in goes ano-
ther game. Perfect - no pro-
blem^. In goes 5aJbre IVulf, and
again little white dots. She did
not press REC or any olher
key wtien she did the Clieal
Mode, So if anybody can HELPI
please I would be very grateful^
E CHfOthiF
Angle^^eyi Crwynedd
/f woEiJtf flpp<tAr tfiaft ^t gome
point, y^u iiape corrupts lh&
piograjTE on the tap&. This is
dm/mitely not as a result of umig
Eft* 'Cheat Mcde' progi^m, as
tlus do&s n&f wrif0 a/17 mfoTm-
aticn to Kpe. Infaijnsiioii caiUTOf
be wiiftan to cfte tape without
pr^^mg the Record k&y first.
/I is diffiauJi to say Mt whmt
powt £fte tapB WAS uorrupied.
Tt& oniypomf dmt it might hsve
happened is it you mmed
Airraid off ^f0r& stopping^ the
sipfl. This cfljt corrupt Th0
pr^gr^m. The ^ec^ you oh-
tsnmd oij thm screen sound Mke
cto screen m&mory b^inff cor-
^.r 'i «jjd msy hs¥& Mp^
pe^ecf because you typed the
pi0gi^in m^orrectiy.
Problems with pokes
I've only had my computer for
about 4 mojitha, and as yet know
very little about programrniiig.
or tor that matter any other as-
pect of computing- My success
with game? U limited, h^ice my
query.
I seem to be having trouble
typing m my progs. For
example, the ^^Ilbound poke
gl7on in your latest issue . which
when typed in gave me 'Data
exhausted in 30'. lakewiM a
dmilar thing happened ^vihen T
typed in a poke for Nont&rra,
only this toie it came up with
'Typd Mismatch'. Tmagine my
annoyance when 1 typed m a
game listing of some 360 lines
from another mag* orUy to find
'Data exhau^ed in 430'; yetp oin
checking, no typing errors
were found.
It has occured to me that
these progs were written on
B6^% but would that make them
incompatible, or i* the problem
with my 464? Have I got a
rogue'? AJao, I have it seems a
fault on my volume contcDd, just
to add insult to injury.
So ihere yo« have it, Ple^e can
you throw some advice in my
direction before t become com^
pletely beld,
Dave fainL€-B
Stroud
Keep your hair on, Davei I
doubt very muck CAar &ere is
Anything wr&tig with your mA-
chmo to 0rc £lus sort of error.
77ie most Jikety CMUse^ i9 simply
that you hav^ typed thi^ Hsnng
incorrectly: ihis error message
is likely to cojne up Jtf you have
mis^typed any of the code in the
DATA statement, line SO of (fte
Spellbound poke.
Listings print&d in m^gs-
nn&s &r^ usually taken directly
from a printout from the com-
puter, an<3f j'ara/y contsin rms-
rakes. But it is very important
that every single chareder is
typed in sccurately, otherwise
the whole Pribram pifiU crmb.
The answer is to check, check,
and check again.
Error mess&ges from
Am&ldt tike tho$0 on mi?$t com-
puters, are not thmt eesy to inter-
pretr F^ ex^impte, Ae error
yoa ^ncojinrered with the Spe-
Libound poke oc^mred athne 30.
as stated. However line 30 jof
telling Arnold to SBAD data
from the DATA list on line 60,
which is why I suspect your
probiem to be there.
Tape to disc transfer
Could you please help me. )
have an Amslrad CPC612e and
have had trouble transferring
games from tape to disc. I
bought Txansmal, but tound that
a number of games didn t trans-
fer and yet weren't on their
7W% [additional programs for
problem tapes). Problem garner
includes Yie Ar kung Fu, Beach-
Head„ Matchpoisit, Matqhday,
Bruce Lee, Khight Lore, Kung
Fu. Number 1 and Dynamite
Dan. C<mld you pleaae advise
me on how to get these gan:ie$
to run on disc,
Bavid Mamk
Ediabugh
Tbeie is mother program
called Bonzo Meddler from
Nemesis that nught do the tri^,
but it might not. Remember that
copyijig commercist gsmes. or
software of any kind, consatutes
a br&ach of copyright and 0s
such is illegal. No one is going
to object if you ^ditafej them for
your own use^ bur if you srart
^^IMng copies, or even 0\te
them to Mends, you are brea-
king the tsw.
Utility of the year
Many of your readers seem to
be having difficulty with some
tape ba^ed prpgrajrui not load-
ing on machines which are
eguipped with diac drives. ]
also had problems with my
CPC464 with the disc drive atta-
ched and would like to pe^s on
to others how my ptobl^mj
were solved:
I would like to nominate
Beau Jolly's IQ Compufei' Mesas
Utility of the year as it solved my
problem;* with di^icult
programs. It has a small loader
program before each game and
ihip loader program, when riin,
restores the memory losr to
disc. You then press COtfflROL
and small OTTER, is for normaJ
tape lofid. and h*y presto your
program works, t hope this tip
will be of as much use to your
readers as it was to me.
9 E Eeynolds
S&utharrtpton
Many than}^ for the tip, and yet
MnoOier reason to buy 10 Com-
pyiter Hits.'
Battery backup
Do you know of anyone who
makes a batterf backup for !he
Amstrad or any other 5 volt
supply computer? The Amstrad
has got proiecUon agauwt mams
spikes and drop-outs, but not of
couji^ against the sort of inter-
ruptions thai lightening causes.
e^p^qially in rujai ^leas like
this with overhead cables^ etc. fi
should be possible to fit a smaH
rechargeable pack between the
monitor anri the S volt sodcet.
Martiit Clark
Builthi W«Ua, PowTB
We don "I Jcnow 0/ wuch a pr(^
duct. You can buy a UPS (uiun-
ferruptable power supply) from
compames such as Al Com-
puter Services^ Telford {Tel:
CBSS'^6027371 TTiis gives you
around Jhslt an hour's use sfter a
power cut - enough time io get
data saved onto diskSr But jfjfif
cost you more Omn the com-
puter did around £S00.
Stunt Rider
] am writing Ihi^ in fruatratioti
and anger. Like most Amstrad '
owners 1 have become a game
addict, I sleep, eat and talk
Amstrad- The reason for ihis
letter is because tor S months [
have been trying "Smnt Rider*, f
have been gripping my joystick
and tried to attempt 50 buees
but always crashing on the 4&h
buSr I have done everything you
can do to the game. There are
probably other addicts out
there wim flte $<ime problems-
Am I doing something wrong of
am I just no good at the game?
JuUan BujfloEi
TJvertoiLf, Devon
Neither. We don "f i^ow of any^
one who can m^age aM 30
buses. BW certaiiUy ant,
Mnyb^ th^y just put the extra
buses there to keep you giipp^
mg the joysd^ for A>e monAs.
C$ji > thmk of any other rees^n
yOu*d WAnt 10 keep playing that
particular game.
»«s«. AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 11
L
Why no discs?
column reaUy winds me up and
Ksmpts me to wriie a Icoei to
yo«. If 1 did WTiie to you I would
cocrecl the 464 owners b^nu^an-
iflg Oie ad^hent of tfc« $64 and
61S8, ajid aa an qwrter of « 61 2& I
would confirm thai Ihe 464 'a
^iv^ th«^ ^dvBAtage- of a btult-iit
if I wtoie ic yow I w«Hiild
sagger th# software industry is.
geared up 10 pr^uc^ cassetlM
fiiBt. with diflc^ a vety poor
second. To ptOT« my point I
tfUfhe quote your nt^giusme
P*ge 113 'IKPOHTANT" ^*if y^m
wniit th« djsc ^emati ci a cr^iftg
.;, {ActiqR) ,. otherwk* you'll
get a caftfeW© DO CHECK Siot
that a DISC VEESIOW EXISTS/^
Probably if I wrote to you I
Mghf leU you th& reason ttie
Of>l<^iij: printer I purohd^ed off
AMSOPT aix mouthi ago Itasn'l
^! produced a colour "prmt
out, is bdcituM ilie $0fmd^&
pxpf^rii04 wltb it wa^ on
Rfimbo riddle
Jn your Issue No. 8 you givg
'Ranibo' 56% overall. I go into a
ahop and lake snoSJier Amstiad
iTtag off the shelf (not to buy of
eoutse) and read through ihe
softwaxe reviews, I find 'Sambo'
gam^ ol ih^ month wilh lfl/2D
overall. Who do 1 believe? The
Great BW or the other
reviewer?
Darnt»n Smith
Wlmbof ii«, Darfl^
lli^gt€:^tBW.
Bock issues
I won"! bother going into all the
stuff aboui how much 1 like youi
mag becausG Ihe following will
leU you how much I like your
mag.
1 have been getting your
mag for about 6 months, but I
missed gettingr issu^ifi 1^2 and 3,
so please can you tel! me how I
S-hotjld go about getting them
CASSETTE, But then [ would
have 14? w:rite ^nd tail you, how,
due t^
iiJMSTlLRD/AMSOFT/ilMSCLlJl
diemter6«t nay printer is in the
hands of AMSOFT'S supplier
who hai olf-ered to pjodace di»c
loftware and solve my dUSk^
ulties. Unfortunately th«y only
have accea^ to a 464 machinQ
and hBV« had to order a disc
drfv^ brorti
Afnstrad^ h^nce no further a<s
tion for another month;
tt I did write to you I could
grovel and day what 371 exceU'^
ent magazine you produce «id
what go^jd value for money i! 13
(93 im AiTudub member I am
pnvOeg«d to r«Q«ive the 'ol-
&dal' xruiga^e at a coat of
tLeT/copyl)
No I don't ihink I'll wnie,
you migbt H^jtk my letter good
enough t€> win a tape!
Your pl&^smff ii^i^ exerdse in
Mlire M* jnwul*ȣf ih us c^Angr-
ajid how much it would cost,
Jaaon NelUrif
Nelion, Itancfl
I'm sfmid tveVe sold out com-
pletely, and £Aiaf goes /or i^ssue 4
as weiJ- 5-5 are av^ab/e ^
i^sck- i^sue^ - Ihey cost corer
pjf^ce p/tjs 33p P&R In oth^r
ward^ £/.S6 ftir @, 6, land B and
£i.S5 for Issu^ 8 (which includes
a free ca^&U$}.
You won't print this
You [sbbers! My colleague. Mr
C Wilson and I sent you a deino
Tape of our ^Ecware house'^
first xeleaae, the "Oteoh 4
paqk" priced at 99pr since wt?
had read in issue 8 of your mag
That you review every new
game you c^ get your hands
on. Th^n T received your letter
saying thai you found our g^rtes
''inter eating" but had da^ded
against reviewing theniL Why?
Okay ihfiy're not bteckbuai^rB,
bui ihey're noi that bad„ For all
you know I could be a starving
SO year old man who's last re^
sort waa sehing up a software
hause. A ceitam game that you
reviewed scored only 10%,
surely our 4 pack would have
scored thai much wouldn't it?
One of Uie games has now
been dropped ajid two others
have been imprDv-ed so wilt you
review them now? IF not [ sup-
pose suldde is the only answer,
bul that wouldn't bother you
would II? By the timje you read
this I may be dead and your
reputation would be ruined- Ha,
ha, ha. ha! But you won't prini
this ai^yway because you'il feel
mg our aw^td sywte/n. Con-
gramlAtiiim, you me our Srst
SOFTWARE mitn^n A £15
^0uche.r ftajti oht ma£J onter
d^psr^eiit iB on i^way fer ymt
to sfpejid on th& CTSC of 70111-
chaic&. M yoa can and i3tn# that
too guilty.
J.adrew Bouglan
Carlisle^ Combzift
Yes, I gvess your pack woidd
h^v& scored around lOper penl
on v^am and you'd have ^en
even crosser We AJiS mt^res-
ted in looking at sofm'Bie tzom
smaU^ new software houses, hut
ther& 's no pomi m our leview-
mg It unless die programs are
good. Neiiher yQg nor the rest
of our read&rs Are going to
thank us for slagging o/T a pro-
duct whiah few people have
everMmsrd oL
Software delays
During one mad week now lost
in the midst of time I ap^iT over
£30 on two programfi. Elite and
Mini Office D. Due to iheir now
infamous bugs they were both
reluined to the ^(Iware houses
concerned. X have only just re-
ceived my new copy of Elite but
saem to bs geitirig regular let-
ters Irom Datab[i$e saying ihat
they are atiU working Otn M.OJl.
[ must say I do tind the
situation intDlcr^lc. i$ this the
standard of treatmenl I must
learn to es^ect? When I spend
nearly £20 (Mini Office 111 on a
product I dqn't eitpect to be
wiihoui the use of it for weeks
(or is it months) on end due to
the manufacturer's faults I know
thai Firebird have given a £2
voucher 10 those of us who had
the mi&forlune to buy Dite plus
bug, but I notice it is Only re-
deemable fri!>ni their own mail
order Jservice, when with a litQe
bit of shopping around toar dis-
counts the voucher is effectively
worth near to nothing.
ti do<es seem to be a aad and
shabby state ci affairs and it'$
about time some of these soft-
ware houses got their fingers
outE. . Phew J nQ<>ded thati
The moraJ of this tale is of
course do not rush out to buy a
progr^jn on release, wait[ And
then you may get wha! the ad-
verts promise.
Barry WMte
Itiggleswadet Beds
Arnold V burglar
I bought myself an AiTiStrad 464
for Ohristmas and sine© then my
house is starting to clutter up
wiQi expensive electrical iEems^
50 I was wotidermg ff it was
possible to buy an alarm system
10 use via the computer without
having to buy a burglai alarm
system.
Andrew Burridge
EKelet
Cm^ anyone help?
It Is I
Before t get to my point, t'd like
to clear up a few others. Firstly
Mr M V^ery who brilliantly
achieve 13^128^80 on Yie Ar
Kung Fit back in issue 7 was in
fact Mr C Valeri, me. Secondly )
totally agree with Anqn from
Ranisgate. Keni of the s^me
issue 'Re-Action', and by the
way that was me as weU, t never
realised my Writing was so bad,
that's why I've taken the precau-
tion of typmg this time.
Now to the TDoint. I've
12 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION h« aa ,
A
always wauled to know why it is
that the price of sofrware is
constantly rising while hard-
ware gets cheapai, I can x^
member the days when a gemie
CQSt between £a and £6 (and,
magasinea were about 6Sp}.
Nowa<3aya most gaxne^ are be-
tween £9 and £10. By compa-
riaon thft 464 used to cost £3S0
(with col&ur mc?nitor3 and now
i!% £300. Ev^en (dajre T mention
it) the Epeccy - used to coat
£iaO, now it's £130 and to be
reduced even further I believe
because of th^ 1 M So why does
software get inore expansive?
Masteitionic hav« ggt the
right Idea pricing their software
between £2 and £3. A game like
Spellbound could beat same £10
game? hands down and
everyone can afford il.
Chriadaji VaLert
RajTiflfate^ Kent
K
Advancing techitology iiaar ai-
iowed hsrdware GOStB to /a/J
drama tfcal/y. S<}ftwaie costs de-
pend }arg"ely an the number o£
sn^n-hi^ars thst hav& gone i/im
developing 3 prcgrsin and tMs
has tended to m^&^& 3S s^R-
ware h^^;om0S sophisticated.
But the phce of so/hwara also
depends on Jiow many people
dx<? lik^Jy tQ b^y it ThAt's why-
Spectrum 9Qftwar0 rwdj to he a
hrde cheaper - th^re are many
more Spectnmi owners out
therer Mast^rtronic'^ gamble of
selilng soRware very ahesply
hds paid off in very high saJes,
and several other companiss
Are now movrng mr& tfie budget
software mArk^L
Ultimat»'s downfall?
When I originally got my Spec-
:rucn m 1984. the fiiiit twro games
I ru^ed out to bity were Un-
#«rwurlde and ECnightlore. Td
seen reihewa which coiildn't
praise shem enough. Then Alien
8 C8^.« out ai^d ^ gireat amount
«C hoo-ha was generated caUing
tt a rip oS, Knjghriore redasig-
etc. but I took no notice. So,
a great fan ot their eoH-
np untL3 then^ whe^ Night-
came out, I bought it with^
*!FGn iG€?ing a review
beforehand. What an idiot I felt
when I loaded it upE It wa& pure
unadulterated $1*L
Gunfright is just the same with a
few more EriUs added to fool the
uiijsuspoctiiig aoftwaie pur-
chaser yet again. But, to cap it
eUl they've now had ihe cheek to
release CybenwR. which is
worse still, ^ronaisling only g{ gm
tipgraded 1933 game Limar Jet-
rrtan. I don't know what is hajj-
pening to Ultimaie, but they
won't lafil mach longer il they
carry on the way they are going
at the moment,
S Valente
Tyn» & WeAT
Maybe you're overstatinff itr A
lot ofpeopie re^y lik^d Night-
shade foi ^xantpie
Help
rr"3lMPOSS[BLE,,.--P.MH
r am of course referring to Air-
wolf. I have had this game for
fouf months and can last onJy as
long as Ihe bonus does. [ have
blown lip bDx«E, attack^ the
''spinning dustbins", prayed^
srwom and pulled my hair oui
but atiU no iucc^ss. Please can
you help me?
Fraier Aopblna
EiBlKilbHde
YeSr If* mean, isn't it? Thai's
why w& printed an indeatructi-
bih'ty Poke in our ^r^ i$SM&.
Did you miss it?
Frozen wastes
T am probably speaking on
behalf of hundreds of Amatrad
uaeis who live up in the frozen
wastes of rhe North. NoimaJ be-
lief has it that the only things
Iforth of Watford are Balmoral
and the Ml^ but some bright
spark took il upon himself to test
this theory and (5HOCK[
HORROR!) brought the Amstxad
Comp^iter Show to Manchester!
And what was the effect?
Amazemem. glee and & iB3t« of
the becie:r life. Now we are on
the Eampag^* Either ensure ua a
Northern Computet Show for
every year to come or we wiiJ
come down there and wring ail
of you I little nacks. Hadrian's
WaU wiJJ not keep 113 out any
longer. So there!
]oha J^nldn
Wtlmslow, Cheshire
Here in Somerset, anyone living
Jioith ofSMpton MalJet is consi-
d&ted an Eskimo. WE ihuik
there ought to be a WESTERN
computer shew.
gooogUooi
^^]0w^m
^^
^^M/U
No Answer
In the 'Knight Games' compe-
tition thorp was a questions
''How long did the Hundred
Years War last?'' Theie can be
no answer to this because there
never wag a war laaling one
hundr^ years. There were two
par^ to the tiundred Years war.
The iirat was from 1337 to 1378,
when the English had viclories
at Cr^ (1340), Gilais (1347)
and Poitiers (1SS6). The second
part was from 1420 to 14^. hi
1429 Joan of Arc relieved
Orle&ns from the Engliah, who
had besieged h for seven
months. She was caught and
burnt in Roven in May 1431 by
th« English as a ijiritch. But ahe
had given the French the will to
fight. The English lost all pos*
Be£«ion:@ m Frajioe except for
the Port of Calais. If 1 am wf^ong I
will admit It, but 1 have got ihis
information from a good history
book and 1 doubt if it is wrong.
PfldraJc Ketly
Dublin
Look, we've already come un-
tuck on two previous compe-
tiUCn queAtionSt wm can^ po»S'
ibiy back down agmn. Your
Irish history books may well
spht tip the war like thatr bm a*
far a? H^e're concerned the gap
between the two phases was all
part of the war which therefore
^ lasted 1337-1433. llSye^is. Can
we return to computing, now
please?.
^^
Modems mJiius
Firslty 1 must stale thai 1 am
probiibly one of your older gen-
eration (that is over 21) of re-
aders and let m§ compliment
your layout of th^ magazine and
its conti-^nE. it has a nice balance
of gossip, reviews and some
down to earth news
For what it*s w<^^th, the only
ihmg thai ig nu^^ing in my
opmion It a m<Kl^m/comms aec-
tion Mtd this is what has
prompted me to write Ihis lelttsi
to you. I havo logged onto many
BBs (bulletin boards) in the Lon-
don and surrounding ^reas and
the biggest problem seems to
be thai hardly any cater for the
Amstrad - SO how come????
I would warmly welcome
any Sysop that would casl an
eye 10 Wxis snuatjon and ['d E>e
even wiDing to pay a nomninal
subsciiption to support any
such board. There are a few that
have li very small Amstrad Sec-
tion eg. th^ Ldr 01 S02 4543 and
Alice's RL^staurant 01 BBS 7S73.
When I have chatted to both of
these Sysops Ihey slate thai they
only have around 8 callers or
so.
If other CPC users ware to
call more and use these sections
regular ty then Ihe Sysops would
be moro wilJing to make these
sections ^xclu^ivoty to CPC
Ue^TS by issuing them with a
password, ihus denying access
toanyoUier terminal. -
BBS are a great way of ex-
changing ideas, selling or ex-
changing software etc. So how
about a mention to other re-
aders and let Ihem find out for
themselves all the benefits to be
had tfom these BBs? 1 have com-
piled a list of B5i3 who have an
Amstrad Section and they are as
lotlows:- — •>.
I
The Compost Heap 0622 46036
Mai<;tt!]01346 71S0
N.B.B.S. 01 ^56607 |
The Uir 01 S02 4543
Alices Restaurant 01 sa2 75?3 i.
ooooaoooo'
aODPOoOoa
POODDDODa J
AH of the above are on
1200/7S and 300/300 and run 24
hours. 7 days a week. I must
finally say that f am plugging ^
them for no other reasons apart
from (he (act that I'm ted up with
only seeing my own name on
them and f would love to s^e
some new messages from othor
Am^radu^rs.
Terry Co»ii«ll .
I^oiidoii SE9 ^
>^
iteo««i^t AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 IZ
Thanks for the tape
Thartks 10 yoy *or the splendid
cassette free with the May iggue
of ^'Amsltad Action'". ^The
CdT^imJit" hag given me many
long ftustraling houx^ of plea-
mxi^ oompleliag Iho ta^k (mucih
to my wife's diggust).
I enclose a pliotograph of
rny compleied screefi showing a
score of 55,288 in jiist under six
and a half hour^ and hope to be
acclaimed Cs>v«nant Champion
in your "Hi-Ecore" sacrtion.
Must go to replenish
energy.
Brian £l:njth
Aflbrord.Kent
NQf b&^, noi ijad fh&t fype d
score was impi^^smbJe andl our
free tEpe c^me along because
^3F{i&r verssom of tHi; game
cosiMined a bu^ ¥srhich mads k
impo^ibie i€f complete.
I pidsuglit *ho demo gaiaes were
great. When in your review of
Get Dexter you said it had lots
of litHe details \ soon foond out
what you infant, When I played
the one screen one of the Brst
things I did was to jump on The
swivel ch^r - you swivel alright
^nd th^^ fly oB; I w$s thrilled by
Swords and Sorcery - il's just
like D and D, almost lite the
real thing. Doomsday Biues has
far bigger playing aiea than I
would have thought for a demo
gaitte - pur^ bnEiance. And last
bur not least, B of B. BAy friend
speni almost all day playing on
if and he said ''ieat game for
ages'. Al] in aU a few games
that will put PSS back on (he
map-
Slmon Himt
Corsham, Wilts
May I congratulate you on the
practical joke you played on
your readers m the May lasue.
Not content with giving us a free
game on a casffetfe which cannot
be simply loaded from tape to
disk, you went to some lengths
to explain to everyone that if
was a slow loader (it wasn't] and
provided a program to transfer
it ro disc (it wouldn I).
Other than this gripe I musi
oongimtulate boOi you and PSS
on your vision and marketbg. A
c^Bsetie of demonstrations pro-
viiCte^ a far better taster for the
buying public than ajiy number
of full page adverts promising
super tasE graphics and ntind
blowing soiiiuL AJIer aJi^ one
seeond's play is worth 23 screen
shots- Seeing some kind of wor^
king program also gives (he
prospective buyer iOme oonfid-
ence that at least part of the
program is written- (Ooean and
US Gold, are youlisteniitg?)
Ai] in all these demonst-
ration tapes are a gre^^ idea.
Keep it up.
pMurson
Bristul
W^ prmted th& correct disc
transfer li^ni^g Jast month with
our apologies.
I would like to draw your notice
to a smaJJ bug m the Coveiiant
program last month- In my tape.
leaving U I find a ghost ha^
mtalerialised and that 1 have fo
kill It before it kills me. This is
rather hard especially as ii is
invisible. CouJd you please tell
me if this is supposed t
happen?
1 know that you have had
this said ta vcm a thnnfranri HnKia
but 1 think your rriag-izine is the
best out of all the others. The
mag is fresh and it lightens up
my day and "Oscar' (my 4S4),
think you!
Rabezt CBob-a Job) Caiter and
Oku
B&iCoa, Lines
Flr^f WW V# heaid of that tag. If
!t'3 invisihl&, hov^ do you know
itsaghosF?
Drymkif - it^s yours
Scannuig througli the letters
^ge of the last issue ^ I noticed a
couple of people h^vuig pro-
blems typing in my Drmnkit
program, if anyone wants a
copy the lazy way, I can provide
one on receipt of a cassette or
disc and enough lenim pos-
tage. The address is the same as
for the new Advenrurt Wnters
(and players!) clu& we are sett-
liiBiriman
Camel Micros
Wel]park
Willeys Avenue
Exeler
Devon
ExaeBE
which has a great library of Trche
software for members (plug!).
Exeter
Program swapping
Could you please put the follow-
ing letter in neart month's reac-
tion page:
''Intere^Eed in swapping tips
and sofhware?]! t have a large
amount of disk and tape soh-
ware and I would like to hear
from Amstrad owners in En-
gland and Ireland- Please send
youi lists to:'
foil A Bourke
treland
Sprry. /ftftn* w&'r^ nor phntitig
your full address, b^c^us^ we
dan 'l mppOTt Baft waie ^wrapp
ing. Something to do with the
/a<7f that J!?asf psQpIe w^o sw^p
software tend io he^p j^ copy
for th^m^^Ivvs. Cu^ss who
lOSOS ODT?
They>e not free
Perhaps you could satisfy my
curiosity on a smail point and, ^t
the sajTie time reinforoe your
reputation for answering ciiti-
cisrt^ openly and frankly.
You advertise 'tree"
games given away with new
subacriptiortt to AA and yet [
calculate that you are chaigmg
£4.50 more for a one year sub-
scription
ihan the equivalent nevrastand
cost. Why? I know thai postage
and packaging costs have to be
considered, but [ would have
ihoughl thai would be substanti-
ally oBset by the percentage of
the cover priee you don't have
fo pay the newsagents on issues
bought through sub^cjiplions.
So why the extra £4.507
Gould It be to repay the costs el
the "Tree" Eapes? I think your
readers would appreci.ite a re-
sponse in the laag.
M Gbrouord
Tadworlh, Surrey
Do 1 deiGct * cymcat mind at
work A ere? Ygs we do lose ^
Auhgt^ntial prapoTtion ot the
co^er pn'co on niagazin&s soid
through newvagen^ mtd £ftere
fore do better out of copi&s soid
on stib£Ctiption. On Iho othoT
hand, thme aie consider^le
cojlff involved in runiung a stLb-
scripiion serwice. I think the
fairest thmg is to comp&re our
subscription co^ts mih other
Ams:rad luAga^mes - they'ro
roughly the same. Except th^t
we offer free software worth
inmost the Mt amounf of the
subscription.
Ludicrous suggestion
Vm not one for putting pen to
paper, but oouldn't resisi reply-
ing 1Q Richard of H. iTCl^^d's
letter in youz May editirai- lit his
letter he condenuu the release
of such games as Raid over
Moscow and Theatre Europe.
The suggestLon that such
games are likely to have any
significant effect on East-West
relations is ludicrous. Also from
what I've seen oJ Theatre Eu-
rope, it certainly doesn't treat
the subject of nudear war light-
ly. The very fad thai the nudear
option is practically a no wm
option 13 iifnough to put the tear
of Qod inio anybody, and deter
anybody &am using It.
If any per&on Ls inQucnccd
by the:B^ games then they must
already be maniacs.
RLghT. ['11 put my Soap box
away now. Thanks for a great
mag^ine, the touches oi
htimour such as that seen in the
reply to Mark Smith's letter
(May issue again) add very
mudt to the enjoyment. Pleane
keep il up.
Whilst writing 1 would like
to ask any readers inteiested in
jomJng a new A^mstrad User
Club, particularly in the Galder-
dale area, to please contact me
as soon as posslble^ I have no
escperience in the setting up and
running of clubs so I am also
looking for tips from pioipec-
tive members and also anyone
who IS currently involved m the
ruruungof acliib.
Andffffw M CoDte, 16 Matlock
Str^etp Lee Mount, RaHl^aKH W.
Yorkti HXa BED
14 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTIOU m.i » -.m 7-- -t^i^
Hf ,
Hc^vvi on the M^^i^i
HP
1 .. : „. .: _., 1
1 1
CONVERSATIONS
WITH APEX
OLD TROLL!
BEWARE OF THE
WEREWOLF!
i^mi^*
p^ i
■B,,
■ I
SCREEN SHOTS FROM
THE SPECTRUM VERSION
lie,
I. ^1 . , -a. .(
THE DOUBT OF
RABAK
BEFORE THE GATES
OF WOLFDORP
MAGOT
THE PRINCE
r.
From (SHmSOVLC-
-the GaMEMaSTERS
^
SPEC"I1ltJM4S/128K' I
(AVAKAliLENOm
AMSTRAD
CBM 64^128 CO •OS
JA\ III
GARGOYLE GAMES LTD., 74 KING STREET, DUDLEY, WEST MIDLANDS DY2 8QB
Telephone: (Sales) 0384 238777 (General) 0384 237222
Nominated for the **Worst Vegetable Movie of all Time'
■1 1
i
Squash 'em or be squashed ^^^|
i Based on one of those alf-
time lows in the world of movie
making that were actually
nominaled for a Golden Turkey
Award, the Anack of the Killer
Tomatoes squelches on to your
screens courtesy of Global
Software
X It's a bit of a sauce, reially.
There's WJmp Plashott, working
away in the PuraTom (tml
processirjg plant. when
suddenly, several hundred killer
tomatoes turn on you.
A Rotten, aren't ttiey?
\ Alt you have lo do is to help
Wimp keep the Pizza Parlours
well supplied with puree while
anempting to hammer the reds
before they can do the same to
you.
^^ Sounds absolutftly kHImg,
doesn't it?
A But can you stand tt^e sight
of rivers running red? And have
you got the bottle for it?
If you haven't, hard squish!
Available for: Spectrum 4ftK, all
Amstrad CPC machines and all
MSX G4K machines :2B*«f
Available through all
good dealers
Send cheques & P.O.'s fo:
PO Box 67. London 3VV1 1 1 QS
Te': 01 -228 1360
i
>
/
I^Q^
p
CGMPtrrER GRAPHICS LTD.
®
N SALES 01-379 6755
01-240 9334
INTERMATIONAL 44-1-379 6755
AMSTRAD SPECTRUM 48K- COMMODORE 64
TO PC ©R
NOTT
PC?
l^AmpHm eautiniiA! d^niAJs, nunaurs mtUl Ahauitd cQncerfdug tk^
Mms^t^d miErro 1o fallow the PCW 8SIS, WiH it be an IBM PC
eovEip^tibLe'? Amdtra^ are saying notl^Bg but Hie p^ape^^ine is
It ls.ag lor^g beeji rurtioured Oiaj
Ajnrtatrad aTci abouf to laundi a^
IBM PC compatibJe, thmiglv iio-
Giiag has^ been oificiaJly aimoun-
ced yet, ff Ainstiad does, it will
c^rtaLttly be a Mce addition to
TheiE piii-cha^ of the Sin-
clair ivame, together witti ttie
CPC 464p gives ^^m virtijaJ
dominaJtion of Gie eittejtainmfiiit
markel. The 61^ is a good all^
romtder wliiJe tlie PCW models
are damm^tERg the -smali teusi-
nefis rft^iket- Indeed larger
QOTiipanios are €>v^n using th^m
u cb&ap termmnJa lo mainrtame
OQinputarS' A PC compatible
VTOuld c^Etsdnly provide an in-
road to ttie buimsss m&iket aa a
^h^l0^ but how can Amistrad
ffl4ke It dJiffexent from ariy other
cheap compatible?
The IBM PC wu kufidied
ttdrveral yMTs #gOi itnd c{iiiddy
b^camfi an industry «tft)£idvd
3iitiply be^J^ias^ of thos^s thr^e
luagical letters DiM\ taieTn-
atjo^al E-isint^s Macitane* had
becoirtc the corflpany for main
lirame computer^^ giving me to
t^ie ^^dage 'nob^idy ever qol
fit€^ toi buying IBM'. TMs, log-
eiher wiOi ihe coinp^r^y's htige
s^ize, gai^e an insyint advantage
over aityone else.
Other companies co^d
eitJier camp^t^ in vajn. Of give
in and produce modeU th^a!
were compatible with the IBM
PC {coutd run software wiitten
ioi i\), bnt were faster or
ch.aapet,. Even laxge contpanies
such 3S Oliv^M, Gom^paq.
Tandy and Ericsson, to name
but a few, STiicciucKsbed no ih^
pressure. The pieiwre qomes
from the huge library of loft-
ware written for thfl IBM PC -
possibly bigger siow ilian the
CP/Mlibrajy.
Recently a whole bq^ch of
cKeap 'Tiaw^en compai^le^'
have hi! the market, Mi»d« b the
Par Ea^t gnd importec^ hcren
thes^ have (greed th«^ price Of
K>FEE
compafibility down towaida the
£500 li^velt and it is against these
thai Arn^tjaij will have to
<;ompete.
So what are th$ rmiiguriff?
Rumouj has it that the FC com-
patible wiU be launched at the
Amstrad aJuiw in JfjanunerCTuth
this month - or ^t the PCW Show
in Se^pfember^ depending who
you Daik to, ftumoiir haj it that it
will come with Di0tal
Research's
GEM^ an operatijig
environment railier like that of
the Apple Macmtcfll^ and with
DOS-Pltis, an operating systecm
very crompalible to the MS-DOS
of the IBM PC.
Rumour has it thai two
mod^k are in ihe oSing: the first
a mDnochxomG model with ISSE
of Earn and selLing far £390, Ihe
secoftd a colour version with
S5€K of Ram aitd a prioe Eag of
£498^ both complete with piln-
ler. Those are the ramours, but
so far there is linle to subatand-
ate fli^m. A ^poM^&masi from
Amst^ad ftaid Td bqy thati if ii
existed V, but AmstrAd Mvc;
always been qaim i^ont iwsw
products until they are
launched. Very few jotimahsts
Imew anything aboyt the PCW
until launch, a^d by then ir wa^
prerty w*U in the shjops.
So n locks hke we will h^ve
to wait. Solfice it to *ay that if the
nimours are true, it wiUUi be
quite a machine.
Colossus Chess 4
This powerful chees program,
already an AA Rave m its CPC
IncamatLon, is now available for
the PCW i25e and 8512. (we
knew they weren't just business
machinesi)
Besides being the moel
powerful chess game available
for the Amstrad range, it io alao
the most flexible. It features
either a two or three dLmen-
Eional board, ha? an almost in-
fiitite number of difficulty levels,
and a host of other features. It
comes from CDS Software and
costs £15,95 foi the PCW range.
*«
J
k"^^
V<5
'^
va
**
^
Music by Arnold
At £139.95 this package may
sound expensive, bui it claima
to turn your CPC in(o a ooin-
pleie recording studio. Cailcd
The Per/ormer this is a MfDl-
based system that allows you to
wiiie. record and play up to
eight seporate tracks of music m
"real time'.
This MIDt (Musical Instru-
ment Digital Interface) is a stan-
dard th^t has been accepted by
most eleetroi^ic lynthesiser
mamnufacturers for the digital
control d their products. Using
it your computer can send sig-
nals to control the pitch, envel-
ope, lone and other parameters
of a series of MIDI inatruments -
which can aUow you to produce
totally professional resuli]s.
The Performer, from Pro-
teus Computing, includes the
wftware and MIDI mterface.
You have lo provide the sysnth-
eEiser, but this son of system is
still considerably ch^^per th^n
Studio timel
vatG^^p RMSTRRD ACTIOWJULY 1986 19
Converting the 8156
Feekng Jiaid done by. ^1 you
3^56 owners No loitger uie
envy of your Mends? Ctcaddl
Products; may have the answer
with an upg^rade kit to convert
th4 humble Joyee into ui 65 12.
The Hidec US12^ Bj i! is
tatchiitgly called, comes with
ihe ifrcond SOOK disc diive and
the oxtr% RAM, 0vmg you a
RAM Disc of aeSK Citadel claim
thai it can be fitted in less th^n
30 minutes if you know how !o
ohange a fuse, and lequii^fs
only dextenty wiih a sciew-
drlver aiid a small hacka^aw. If
DfYPUBUSHMG
Fandy irymg foiix hand at pub)
iahing isut nev«r quir«i got
around to it^ AdYflnC^s^d M-oiftory
Syiiem^ nughl hame ju^ Ihe
thing lo pionde ih^ iik^c&tinve.
At long iMt AJtOr Pagmimk&f is
avaUabie for ihe 4^4, 6B4 aitd
eiss.
Thi* highly jiucccpafcl
program Js paii of a new
species of saftw^re Ihat is takmg
a high profile at ihe mDineni -
p4rtly thanks to the efforts of
Eddy Shah, ^d that little factory
down in Wapping.
AMX Pjgf^j^aire^j won't let ^
you produce the Sunday Tiines
from yoiir bedroom. boS i? mil
i€l you have a damn good iry. It
is a coJiTLbinaboit ol if ord pro
ceasor^ graphics package and
rfpesetlei. With it yon can. ky
your golden prose inio column
gilda on a page, interspersed
with the occasioxial woik of artp
Pictures can b^ streidned,
^hjiijik and mav^d around tti^
page I and yout copy 5^t in a
variety of typefaoes.
Graphits for
pragrammBrs
Hidden on oni; qf the di^cs thai
comes with jour 6128 or FCW ss
a set of powerful graphics toob,
(he GSX graphics ay^em, HiSoft
k^m to let you use itiese wilh
HtSofi C ' r and Wj&j/r Pjscai®.
aJlowijig you to draw Lines, plot
pomis and hll areas on screen
with your Cor Pascal programs-
The GSX functkon library in-
you aro scared of playing
aiound with Joy<»*3 Irmards
then you can always go to one of
Citadel' G dealers who will do
rhe )ob for you.
The kit <srat5 llSS.SS, in-
duding delivery, and can be
bought direct from Citadel ot\
01 -&S] 1348.
Nome change
Micfofilc, roviowod in oui June
issue, has changed its name.
ComL^ Software ^re now calling
it CoiniX CSrd-Indi^x, because
of other products with the sajne
or similar Htlee on the mark el. Is
this the start of a trend?
Leather on wlll<iw+.*
Fancy yourself playing for En-
gland (Oh the gloryi). then this
could be the one fqr you. Audio-
giMuc have \mi ielea««d
Grmham Ocioc/iV T&st Cncket
on CPC cassette and dis^c. It i*
meani to be a faithful ^unulaiion,
with aound eGTecta and speech.
Prices are £9.85 and £14 &S
respeciively.
Let's hope it'a not as bormg
as the real thing... (ducks to
avoid H^nsuing flACk from cricket
fansy
//t
FflflMMlL
PAlt
Urn
I ir^
R
R
JML
"l^f I r^fPit ' LftiA Foftt - ' MjuU JHn^
Xf^gjjJ
Uileask
Yoir
Creativity
IV
Nut i
Hni 2
7 mi J
Font A
i If f fell
n t
s V « i: t ti I l\ i I
\Kt csBpiltr t* Milt
R^h tlKf
Bisi^i. lit
CPft t^
cpft tvffittl*r
.Ift
t lor
f
Dtgite!
Magsc at
Today's
Show!
^1 mt 7$n it* ;a :i#
. i^t , ii 91 1 J tf d
t : ^t 7r It I ■D.^Rt
^ L V t i 5 r, f 7 f T ^
Tiie paclcage comes on two
discs id^d is designed to be
used viFith the AMZ mouse sy-
St^iin^ ft sfeOs for £49.95. and will
compete with Mirrtyrsolt s fleel
Str^^t Editor when tMt appears
m di0 shops.
qoipg rates aiound 30 routine S^
That allow you to unlock the £ull
potential of these machines'
high resolution graphics. Even
more iinpojr*amt, HiSoft are pic-
viding full documentaticn, and
the routines in Source fomir so
you can make the moat of them.
Owners of previous ver-
sions of these languages can
upgr^d^ by returning their
discs to HiSoil together with
£10,00. The new versions cost
£3S.9S each. Arnor can be found
on C0&a2) 696421.
JUs0 a^mlabie for ib^ CHT
rsx^ge is Aid utilities, a support
p$,okage for the moiiso that en-
ables you to enhance pictures .
created using M^ Art. It ia
priced at £14.S5 for the cas^tte
v^^ont aitd £ 1 9 .95 on disc-
The ultlfttate
database?
That grandaddy of databases.
dBase S, is now available for the
PCW a2S6 and as 1 2. Fsrsl Soft-
ware havc^ finalisod a deal with
publiaheis Ashton Tate to
launch the package al the price
of £1 19, instfiad of !he £4 00- odd
that IS usual for this litla.
dBa^e /T. despite its age. 1^
still regarded aa one of the moat
powerful and Oe^ibl^ databases
around. This is largely because
It ^s a programmable database,
^ith its own, langiOiage ^t le
Amstrafi^& owrt
modem
Amslrad havo niad^ a deal with
Pace to market the Nightingale
under the Arr^trad label. This
excellent modem, priced by
Pace at £13S, can communicate
ar V21 and V23, allowing con-
nection to most bulletin boaids
as well as Telecom Cold and
Prestel. As such it caters for 300
and 1300/75 baud rates and is
switchable between: Originate
snd Answer modes, though il
dees not f^lur^ auEo-dial or
auto-answer.
Amstrad are to sail it at a
budget £39J5^ cofliiplctc with ^
three-month subscription for
Prestel and Micronet fiOO.
Sounds Ilk© a good deal, though
you will stUi have to gel an
H^EZZ mtcrface and suitable
commitntcaitons software.
The Cou idron "^ "^^^ "^
gam miagical
continues search for the c
Fans of Cauldron from Palace 5nish the game
Software, which includes us aa
we made it an AA Ravu, will be
pleased to hear that Part II has
been relused, StU^titled TOe
Pumpkin S^rik&s S^ck it is more —
of an ar cade/ad v€?ntu re. and fol-
lows on from where C^u^cfron
left off. —
In the first episode you look | ^
the port of the Witch, defeating ["
the Evil Pumpkin and retrieving ^^ ^
the Golden Broomsdck to ^ "
beoomfl Witch Queen, In Canid- ^^
ran 3 you switch sides and
become the last guxviving pum- [ ~
pkin, whose mission is to defeat ^^__^
ihc Wiich Queen. Sounds like a '^ _| J ~
recipe for schiEophiQnia to i^j^»«^
me... ■■' ^-^j,
The Queen's castle, where - ~ / \ [T^
the action takes place, has OV#r 1 ^'
100 looms. As usual anything '
thai moves can kill you. but you
gam miagicaJ powers as you
search for the object needed to
mm
B'l
20 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION upt«4>c.
mmn...
Save the
.;.:r]S^T in ute to Basic. It is an
indu^lry slandard m the samne
vein as Wordstar.
FiJ^l Softwaire ire aJao off-
ering a telephone ^ hotline' lo
provide bistaiii help to thosie
with probl&ins. it will cost an
uddilional £40 a year and wU! be
on their main phone itum^r -
072S7 5244 A lol «o pay. bur
ihe^e 3t^ the sort of piic^^ that
buffjness micro byy&jrs aire ns^d
to!
Ojr doee ii need «v;jig? Not
according to AnuBtiad who ^ay it
is still in f\ill proditcllon. and still
The purchase of the Sindaix
brandnamiep and runtoars gf a.
nofw 12BK Spoctruiti with built in
cassette deck caused concern
over the ftituj^e of the CPC 464,
Ae the mne Alan Sug^i ^atcd
ihat he viewed the Sindlair nante
as AmsEiad^s 'Enteitaimnent'
labeL leaving Amsnad itself to
look after the business sidb, "Ht^
464 looked like the piggy-in^
the nuddlo, and aoon for the
chop. However a spokesman
from Arn^irad staEed ihaE pro-
duction is stiU in full swing, the
464 ie selling well^ and that, as se
com<5s complete with monilor, lE
is not regarded as a compelitoi
for she new Spectnim.
BAmi STARS
Wilh a scenario drawl tig heavily
om the Uhns 'Baittestar Galad-
icaV 'Star Wars' and 'Return of
the Jedi' (snd no bad thing
either), Battle Stars is the new
game frdm Micrgbylc Software.
You Jind yourself in charge of
the star cniiaer Galaxy One, and
your faak i* to penetrate the
outer shields gf a Cyboig Battle
Star, launch a Ranger Craft Ml
of Jet like Conttmandoa. enter
die Battle Star and destroy its
zvaclor ccoitng aysiem.
Thia IS accompkahed by
meuis of three seperate game
ftaquances, each using different
diiplay iGchniques. the hrsi is
One 'Deep Space Mission\ which
m depicted in vector graphics;
nwl IB she attack on the Battle
Scar, using full colour SD
siprites. and finally comes the Jet
Bike tasks, utilising scrolling
screen displays.
tl looks like a mammoth
gsune, involving puzzles as well
as high speed xeacdons. We
look forward to reviewing it
Joyce meets Protext
The Protext word procGsaing
system from Amor is now avail-
able toi tlie PCW range. This
powerful package has received
much acdami on the CPC
itiodek, together with its accom-
panying Prcspeil spelling
checker and Promerge PJus
madmeige system, How aE
three packages are availalile as
s single system for £79.95, or
JVospeiJ itBelf can be bought for
£^.35.
Prcspell cornea with a dic-
tiQnary ot over 30.000 words
and can check Locoscxipt ai
Wordslar-type Sles as weU as
docBjnentB created under Pro-
EEielL Amor claim if can
be used to solve
So if you've had enough of
L acamilJ ^ Profext could make
4 irjiJ:^ ajtemaiive.
So, much ado about nothing
then? We hope so, but if you
have troiLble getting hold of a
464, wiite ant^ tell ue about jt.
COMPETITION WINNERS
W^ r&ceiVfld a munvii ro^>cnt« to
bc^ ^^ Tomahawk: and CJcesin eom-
petifioiiri ivhieh &!^p«Bred in ^« Mny
i^^m^. Tw^niy flvo winners were p-ql-
i^c^Hfl p&r f^csmp^ but ii yoDT rnurne^
do^if-^t appear below don't d«Bp4lr,
Who knowa, r:4itt ftt-onJih ^ou3d he
your lv\>c^ fiEioKih!
TOMAHAWK
The Correct ftFawem:
L WhaJ L* the nattoculity ot the
world'i ^arg^ai helicopter?
2. When Wi*» the fijat fiigKl o! the
Apftche tie^copler?
J 915
3. TMiat Ji the crew capaciiy of ttie
Apach«?
Twn
4. Wluch hAhcaplAi ii uM*d hy th-a
The Wettex
5. Wtio wrot» TcmMhaw^
D. M^nhaU
6 Whii EftiChnology doe* an Apsch«
pilcit uae t-n Bee al ni^ht?
S4ir:«^ M*spti!p_ !.^iiH*ta: T CSiiiiwfe. 6idid*T-
SvAcxLuid. Elgiii, 14>TirfifiiEe; HhefIt Trqilari.
Invdin^D^ Qsrera Simxpr, Emrf^nt, S^rtJi Bmra.tm.
Pktmn\^\.I t ^in^iUDs Ca^nkKu5ey. C&mrivK D
r4*r: IE Sl!^>iiil. J^»».-3«ii !?^r^. Hi Rwr mnwo*!**
4,4vrf;acA: Wi;U4ffi M44&i^ ^£EiP«ri«n. r4i:di«^
SH^i^ii. IsviD^ i'.jc. ^04tlAr4; ItHrfAk. £^Ibf&. BiJ-
-noi^hun; Ml S^ } JL^-ixdaa. SiaiEiTAd-. ££tcx: ill J
OCEAN
Th& Corred Anpwfsr^;
I Whfc^[:h of thfl fol^olving Ihree hy
Bcuitfl IB a Eftodifh tea cE Batmaia?
S, Wh«t wdB Babnttn'i r*&l n&mo?
lrdc# Wayn*
^. Wl^a woA ihg C^MhA^. City's CMaf
c^f Police?
O'Hua
1 , WhAf irfa* FGTli'* fill* hit aingle?
2, Who b'Liijt the Fleaiure Dom^'?
Enbla lOiafk
3, Wl3Q L^ FGTH'fi lead am^ear?
Tha wlnnari:
Mr V E n4«ll«^ 't^M, Wmrmmlk V^MjM.immr-
AAAI^ Wi.*tli*y. Cti^i'Mh'it: lUeMLLi JJiafa. tr*B..
h«i»i Efit^t: 54h#* W*fts. w*tog^ t*«i» M«i-
jj^ni^, OJflCJiit -a^iu^* ]>ATiMipr«l-. CLugj*: Mt-
Iueh; JHUduftt SinLp4diM, E^MlJtocniifi; Ekrla
leio^, CvmfX, DftrfeJ P>wn. tujicnitk. Ch^ibtiir- Eitrt
iip»d«.i«»«tii AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 193621
<
The operating system of d computer is somethrng that
most of y& tok© lor granted - il we are aware of its
exi»ten» at oil. But CP/M, the operating system
^uppli^d with the Amstrad 612& and PCWs, Is a
powerful system that can transform the way you use
your machine, if you know how.
Over the next few months Matt Nicholson will be
showing you how to make the most of CP/M. Port One
starts here!
You have probably realised by now ihaf computeTS are pretty
dmttb. If you have ever had to work your way through a badly-
written Adventuxe gamq, or tried to soit out a simple mistake in
a prograKi listing, you are pr&bably eortvinced ihey are very
dumb. You axe not wrong, but in fact computeis are even
dumber than that.
The basic ms^dhinery. the hardware if you like, has no
con<:eptiDn of how to display a letter on !he screen, or how to
load a tape from the cassette player, let alone how to become
dangerous at Ehte! Everything the computer does is controlled
by the software. ThiB software, in the form of progiams. comes
in a variety of forma: as cassette games, on discs^ or in ROM
(Read-only memory] chips built into the computer.
Arnold comes with the Baaic programming language al-
ready in ROM, and 'boots-up' Basic whon tur}:ied on. This means
that the program called Basic' is automatically loaded and run
aa soon as you flick the power swltch^ But something has to tell
the computer to do this when power is applied. That someQiing
is the 'operating system'.
It is the operating system thai breathes life into the
computer. With it you can press a key on the keyboard and get
a reaction on the screen. Without it the ma£:hine is totally dead,
and might as weU not be turned on. It is the operating system
that knows how to read infonnation from the keyboard, how to
display informatiQn on Ihe screen, hew to send data to the
printer^ and where everything is stored in memoiy.
Every computer has lo have an opeT^ling system of some
sort. But it was not until the use of floppy discs for djita and
pxogram storage became "uvidespread that the idea of a stan-
dard operating system, common to a wide range of models and
TRakgs, was dg-v^loped-
Stoiing information on discs is not a sLmpie matter. Discs
can storg aji awfiU lot of data: USk with the 6128 and 8256, and
720k on the second drive of the PCW 8S12« The discs have to be
'forma-tted' in an orderly mamuer; so now data doosn't ^jnr^j-
write old, ajid the opeirating sy&tem can k&ep track of wheie
everything is.
Handling disc storage is the mfiat compleE task ^lat an
operating system has to handle - indeed many operating
s^Tfit^ms are called 'disc operating systems' for that reason, or
DOS for short. Eventually it occurred to someone that if alt
computers stored data on dis<^ in me saitie way^ then ofbe
machine could read another's di^ca, regardless of make, race
or creed. Extending this principle to the camputer system as a
whole: any computer could be made to appear like ajiy other
computer tc the software, which means that any program could
run on any machine - a tremendous boon to aoftware wriiers! In
effect The opera ling s^ysiem would create a 'virtual machine' that
could make aU computers appear the same regardless of how
they stored data on the disc, or displayed on the screer^-
An analogy can be drawn here between a computer system
ar^d a bu:sy o^ce with Ming cabinets, telephone systems and all
the other paraphenalia thai go to make up an oCfice. The
operatiitg sy^tc^m is rathei like the secretary. Every office has a
different filing system, but you onJy have to ask your secretary
to file a document; you don't need to knew how ii is done. And,
prodding all secretaries speak English, you should be able to
get a document filed correctly in any offi« - regardtesB of th«
Gling system actually in use.
The CF/M operating system was, for all intents and pur-
poses, the Erst tiniversal operating system to gain any sort of
widespread acceptance in the rnicro-compining world* This
was largely a matter of chance: it just happened to be in the
right place at the right time. It was a powerful and friendly
system by the standardfi of the day, and was ideatly suited to the
popular 260 micio-processor with S4K of memory - the same
processor as that used throughout the Amstrad raj\ge. Even
now it is still possibly the most widely used operaiing system in
the world, tinough it has been rather overshadowed by MS-DOS,
a mor^ powerful system designed fox use with IS-bit computers
such as the IBM PC However there are still ihouwnds of
applications written for CP/M systems, all of which can potenti-
ally be used with Amstiad micros.
But enough of this. It is time to turn the old computer on and get
down to some practical work. Wait for the screen to dear and
then insert ttie disc rtiarked CP/M* or *CP/M PLtfS* into the disc
^^-^
22 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION rordtm^ymmyxoKa,..
^^
m
1
w
y
^'-
f
.,
'^.^^•.-,\
■■v,v.
.^■xv - < - s
drive. U you are usmg an Arnold m^&rt it with the CP/M label
upwards; if you have a PCW ihe label should b& facing lo the
leftr Soon after this the drive will make a whirrijig noise and the
red light by the drivi? will come on. This indicates tlial CPfM la
'booting^: automatically loading into the msmciry,
AfTGr a short time the screen vrill display ita opening
message, which may not m^an an awful lot at this slage. Pear
not. The important thing is tlie A> that appears on the bottom
line. You wLQ ^m^ a lot of this over ihe nex! few months!
This is Ihe 'A-prompl\ and is the prompt for you to eniei
your instruction to the machine. Like Basic, the CP/M operating
system understands a variety of commands. Though it is by no
means a full computer language, it ncverthQlcs& can perform
some quite complex tasks from this prompt.
In fact it is the arrow that is the prompt. The 'A' simply tells
you which is thq aclivo drive - the drive that the computer is
taking its insiructions or data from. If you are luclty enough to
have an 8512, or a second disk dnve attached, then the second
drive is labelled drive 'B'. H you type B: after the prompt, and
then hit Return or Enter, the prompt changes to B> to indicate
Ihst you are now logged on lo the other drive. You can return to
Eh^ fir$t drive by typing 'A:' and Return.
You can change drives even on a single disk PCW machine,
by changing to the Ramdisk. This is labelled drive "M^^ so
simply enter M: to log on to the Ramdi&k, Don't forget !o return
to drive A afterwardst
DIRECTORY
It L9 now time to meet one of the most useful coinmands CP^^
h&s tQ offer. At the A-prompl type DIR and Return. It doesn'1
matter if you ufi« ^PP^^ or lower case letters - CP/M under-
stands regardless. The disk should chunter quietly to itself foi a
few e^conde. and then the screen should look something like
this:
A JUCPM^ IMS I 3A^K CifK
A ^I-rKE^tJ COK : SSTIST GC-JI
rALtrvh >CQH
SITT COH
f7m 3W
]»A?EK CUM
^JOV «QM
&T9CKIT COX
ayaittT cr.it
You may find your screen looks a little different. 'Rtis is
because (he versions of CP/M issued with the 664 and 6128
differ slightly from that with the PCW models. It should beax a
resemblance io the above though.
This list is known as the directory' of the disc, and ft^a^
sumtnoned by ihe DIR command. It basically shows you what
programs or data are stored on that particular disc. Each
program, or each chunk of data is stored in its own '£ile\ which
an be thought of just like the individual file^ in a filing cabmet.
One file might be a computer ganner another might be the first
c^iapier of yotir best-aelling novel - written using a word
processor in another file.
Cacli file also has a unique file name consisting of up to
eight letters, followed by a fiJe-type of up to three letters. The
two parts are $epciated by a fuH-stop. Some of the file names
from the lisi above are ERASE.COM. RPED.BAS and KEYS.WP -
but note that the full stop is not shown in the DIR hstmg.
File names can be made up from any of the numbers or
letters on the Amstrad keyboards and most of the symbols
available loo. File names can be typed upper or lower-case, it
doesn't msitter because Arnold treats all file names as upper-
ease; however some symbols should noT be used as they have
other uses in CP/M and would cause Arnold to gel confused.
HISTORY LESSON
For rti«e of yow who iilte to p^t
fhue thlngi into |^rlpa£tiv<^
the CP/W opef otMg system wos
de¥e1t>ped by a Gofy Kildal! \n
Amfrrico wKib he wta woj'king
for fhe tntefi mkro-dilp mgnu-
focturef. Irrtd hod pr odgced ihe
Rfit FTilcrO" processor powe-rfuS
44i04/gf) foF mlcr^ computflr m
1973 ~ the B080 os if iwa*
calJBd. What wos rw^^d was
on operoting lyitem and, ui the
floppif <il%c hod just appedrcd
oi o ¥loble iloroge devkep
Oory dacidad that hh operot-
ifig sy^tetfi vhould moke the
most of the rmw medturii. So
CP/M woi bom,
iut Intel tiod inodfl fh#
OTTio^mg decision to phose out
the soH^ofe deveJopnfietit div^
ilon and Gory wos left to (inhh
Cf*/jMi on h?i own. Together wtt*ii
£oni» coll«ogu«s he fotmed fha
compof*y DigHol Re^eorch \rv
1976^ who hold the cp^^ng^ht
of CP/M ro thh doy.
The aOSD w0t, tinder-
^tondobl^r^ a huge succe-s^ It
woi onty mrpos^d o few years
lotei- by fhe more powerfel
280, devel&ped by enoihef
spEintef group ftom inrel col led
Zi1&Q. Hie ZSO become the
bosiis for vjft^oNy oH b^sfnew
ffvoch^-f^efi or\d CP/M b«i:ome
the standard micro operotfrig
fyitwn. it wQ* ody sufposted
by the developmenl of 16^ felt
mfcroi and the growth of MS-
DOS^ b^l Jhot H onother Moiy,
On the tiome side. Hie Z 80 wgs
odoptwd by £Er QFve for rhe
2X80 In 19BG fa toindderKe?),
I the ZX8 y and ftnof Sy ttte Spec-
trum. It ts thif pfocijs^r ^he^t h tn
the Annitrod ron9;e too.
VEftSlONS
like Ohy compyter software,
CP/M was for U&n perf^l
whef> fiFit tauTKihed ond haM
j^^jT* til rough severol versions
to reoch 11% pretent form. The
flrsJ vefiiort t& be offered to the
gar^rol pubtk wos versltsn 1.3^
dDi<eiy folbwed by 1.4. This
W05 designed for rhe Hlmn
popdor eigb^KKh floppy disc,
buJ II woi not iofig before
imofler di&c se£«i were adop-
led^, CuFminoting tn the fhree-
inA d1$c vterf by the Am^trod.
VersFOfi U4 cogW nof cope,
Whot wqf needed wot o
version fhol couM cope wlib o
variety of dSsc fofmots ond
Sfzei, both tHo5& o%i^iloble qt
Ht« time ond <dfly thot mighf
oppear In the fu^r^. Version
2,S wos developed to cope
with thl^ and is <he ver^^'on mo^l
common lodoy. Cf/M 3.2 h
luppHed wIlH ft>e AmstT'od
CPC464 ond the ODU disc
dfJve fof rtie 464. !r h ojio orw
of the vefSJOfi* mpp\^^d wirh the
6128.
The oH»r Is Ver*Joft 3.1,
o^^erwise known os CP/M PlUl
Vet^on 2,2 ti very flenib^e, burl
bosJcoHy designed wjth WIC ot
ftAM \n mind. With the odyeni
of \76K ond 256K fnicfov ^
more powerful yersJon wot
f>e«d«d. Version 3 J was devel-
oped to cope wJfti jorgef mefiv
&ry mpchtr»e%^ bMt woi olio en-
Itor^c-ed lr» Qtt%5f woyi foo. (t H
generofly o more powerlnf ond
M«Hndly vefiicHi than 2,3v It
corner with ifie 6 1 28 ofld bofh
KW models.
fvefythkng J*i ttiit -writf*
sbotild wrark with Vertiofi 3-^^
ond where %2 wser^ ofe teft In
the coW we will to yoy knon I
►
Avoid using ihe«e character? in yQVti fU& Rames:
The fioi pari of the film nam# is usually a mnemonic to x&mind
yfiu what is in there, while the second part - or file type -
enables you Co group a number of &le£ togeiher. For eicample,
this article is stored m a Die generated by N'ewWoid and called
'CPM.10\ CPM ^ to i:«imind m$ whai Uie fUe cQntaiiis, sLnd all
articles for ihe July issue have d^@ £ile type '10' aa this is our
tenth i$siie.
You do not have lo iise a fije type extension at all, howi^ver
its use incrreases the power of the DIR commands as tt is possible
to display any subset ot the full directory. This is dono by using
the 'wild card' charaotera ? and *. Try typing this after the A-
prompl:
A;
-d i r ■ c □ a
£;iK]#
-in
■Ei*
cov.
C4BE
C3«
Pi. ICE
coif
cqx
can
IArCT7ACl
Sil
cox
COM,
SB
TLST
What you see J3 a lial of ftll the files on ihe disc in the 'A' drivo
that have the file type COM; the * effectively stands for "any
combination of characters'. This can be very powerful, lor
example t can fmd all the at tides thai axe in this i^sm^ by ^Mnply
typing DIR*, iO\
The other wUdcard, the ?, stands for 'any single characier
in this position^ Try rypmg ttus at ihe A-prompt:
A I um cm
^T£*iaO COK . g^rt£t CUM . HTiTTfB?^ COM •■ SffTl^ ^ISfl
what you have is ^ liist of all files that start with the letters
'SET...\ legaidless of fiie type. The use of wild cards is
powerfiil, and will crop up again and again in this series - but
ttiat IS enough (or the time being.
So in this first part of the series we have briefly met the
Directory command of CP/M, and played around with the
ooncepl of wild cards. Next month we will explore DIR more
fiilly. and look at some parOGuisily important [He types. See you
then!
HOW IT WORKS!
WARJ^tNG; ThU n«xt Mt i%
v«ry t«citni£ititr and yau don't
have to r«iid !l untvti fvtu ar*
A d*cticat«d hatkw and ui«d
lo pieylnp aroynd wMi PHK%
and POKIi. \t yCHj'rv n^tp then
den'fe lNith*H
if yov Mt^ on <t PCW with no
diiCt in Ht* dF)v#^ yoy ure pre-
sented v^ilh a bbnl ta*»e>, Thi^
h fhm <co^d hqrd'MM'ore, wtfh no
o^e rating lyltf^ ond n?
P'ogronri running . Af soon qi
you [Pter t the CP/M dlic o jmolS
progrom ^n ROM re^di ih^ llr^t
trOck €^ the disc mio memory^
ond ttonsfers control to it. Ihlf
progrom then teodj the CP/W
code from the disc, ond tron^-
f«rs conrr^ «e CP/M. Once thii
i* done yoij can remove f^ie
CP/M disc crlt^o9ether, All the
codt f*qMlr«d (i in the RAM of
your ^OPtipi^ter.
Thb proceia \% uaWcd
'boot&trcpp^ng' or 'bootfng up'
CP/Mi TWf lotfief b^'^orre notne
conies from the phrosi^ 'puHing
youm^lf yp by your own boots-
tropi', Thb [i of oours^ Smpo-
«ible, b^t ti effectively whof
the computer is d^^Mn^ to Eti^Ff.
Th* CP/M lysliem is not o
finite progrom^ but Ss mod? L>p
pf ttwee seperote pfogroms
IhOt $1f dt Ihe top of ifie A4K
m«n^f y mop. fi^ght o I Hie top 3 s
ih« IHOS {it^nding For Smk
tnput Outpyf Sy5teffl)« it Is ft>U
^tm\^ of code tfiot tronsloiei
your portlculor mctch^n* info a
*CP/M system^ ond as sodi js
vniqtA to eocH modikne. Ai iti
f>oni« impiiei pt deoif parh-
culorly with tt^ kfiyboord,
screen, printer ond ony other
oufpvf Of ^put poiH your mo-
diine FntgNt sport.
Below this Ef the BOOS
(Idik Disk Operotin^ System).
ThIi is itondord to CP/M, ond
iOi^^lfs oFfer f!^r^rylhprvg to do^
wp^ tti=^ disc drive; Thene- 1^0 .
progrofrts, BIOS and ftiSOSy-
forin the kernel of CP/M and
ore occQSionolly referred to at'
the FDOS, stonding For Full Disk
Op^rotEng System-. If yotj wonf
to impr^is your Friends - that's
the one to remember!
Under thb i\H a smdE^ti'
progrom colied rfke CCP, or
Console Comma fid ProceitofH
The CCP proc-oises the com-
mcnds mode on Ihe keyboard
ond diedcs wh«ttier it is o CP/M
commtind, m whkh cose ft deols
with the commond iHelf. Ef it h
not o CP/M cofiHnond \^ f&^k%
on th^ dtsc for o command with
thot nome - more on thai loter;
En fhe series.
At fh$ oth^ end pf M^
memory^ occupying ttie first
256 bytes ol youj^ RAM, fs on
oreo reserved for ll^ lystem
pOfometers'. These ore neee'
ssory to tell the loftv^ai^e you
might be ri^ning where to Hnd
vorSous ports of your system (n
RAM.
Whot Is ?ett between the
top of fh[i oreo end the bottotn
of the CCP progrom h colled
tfw TPA or Trdnsient Progrom
Areo. if IS liere thot the porli-
cuEor softwpre yo^ ore njnnfng
sitT in miemory. If yov ore using
CP/M 2.2 your IP A wUt be
obogt 39 K En stie. CP/M PIUS
leove^ you 6\K^ not t^ecoy^e st
St o smaller program bvf
becouie of ^w extro menioffY
ovollolile on the 6128 ond
PCVy models. The memory tnop
of CP/M PLUS on these mo-
dilnes is ratH#r more complex,
than thot outlined above. If you
realty wont to isnow what It is
lik^^ tefer to "The Amstrdd
CP/M Plui' book reviewed in
oyr lost isiue - but remember I
did warn youl
24 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION n-*&»o to^jt^i
w
w
>i*?ft,-*
or any 3 tor
24.99 ^^^
+£1500.
Jr%
wf'^^r^ftr^ Ki
::: ^-^-cr-isC
1— r.r..-...i-r«r,-.
^^^^■^^
t-rt TIKE TUf^^ '^r^ ^^ ^:=' «■»--,
--t«P ^t**i
^
; ^l^^B^ij^^ Hilars!
it^:
U
PLUG
GO
Andy Wilton looks at ^ the world of ROM software
three boards and a host of software, plus all you need to use them
Imogine thai yo^ c^uld turn your Arnold on and
immedidtelY run a program mthqut having to load it
first; dud that you stiH had Ih© whote of Arnold's
memory fmrn for doJo, evon though I he pro gram was
16K long, ImoBine utilities and toolkits that you could
summon instantly, without affecting progroms already
in memory. Like the sound of this? Then you need a
HOM— or severol of Ihem^ indeed.
A ROM 13 a ReEd-OnJy Memory. If that doesn't mean a lot to you.
then read on.
B<?fore you can lun a program on your Arnold ^ that
program has to be slored somewheire in his memory. MoonaJJy
it will h^ve lo be stored in RAM - Random Access Memory.
However when you switch Arnold off. any program in RAM gets
wiped out. This means that every time you switch on you^ll have
to pill the progtiaiTi in iliere aU gver again, by loading it from
tape or disc,
LDading can be anngy-jig, especially il you're working
from cassette, but that's not the only problem with RAM
ROM UlElHies
These are a very conation foxm of BOM prcgram, clt^sfly
because li^ey're the son of thLcg you waul to bm able to call up
ly without wiping out great chimki ol RAM.
'1Ttn|iia
Qsiite a b^rgainn thi* or^e. Ft may be *?f pensive but it's got a
good set of diflk/printer utilitie&r a fu3i disk editor and a E^A^G
debugging loollni!.
OlscDam^n
(B«e&ugsofl) £29. 3S
RevjG'^^Qd \n Miiy'a iAawe ol AA, DiscDemoit is a u^efvl package,
bntthctpficf^ifi^bi^^^i^^p.
BtUc VmmT'M Utilities
Pif you don I Want Uicpj^'& d^bu^gmg c>0Tfijfnaitd5. this is the
utilities p4ck for you.
{Seebiigioft) C2S.9S
As r^Fie^^d m iwl ixionth's AA^ fliis alaghily dub^&iia package is
a transfer' ufiJity. Its disk copper cAn b-^st some forms of
protection, bm it's not cheap.
TranftiTiAt
(Pride) £19.95
Anoihej sJighUy doubrful pai^itge, th^ one's a tape lo disk
rraji£[gr progiam.
progran'^. H you use a word processor p the tt^xt you're working
on is probably stored in RAM. The s^am€ goes for the BASIC
program you're working on. or the piece of machine code
you're usix\,g a mohitor lo debug. The bigger and more
powerful a RAM program is« the less room it'U have to work in,
because a hefty chimk of memoiry is taken by the prograiti itself.
26 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION E^^imth^m^^mf...
What you need is a pi^ce of memory which i& separate from
the RAM, and won't be wiped clean when you turn the power
off. This kind of memory i$ called Hesd-Oiily Menioiy, or ROM
for short. T^e 'read-only' bit means you can't alter the conieuls
of a ROM. You can't store irtformation in it. you can*t load a
program inio it, and you can't wipe it cleait by switc:hing off or
PnogroinPimmg ROMS
The 43JiDrin)CK^ ddvantag^ hef a is that tcKilkits and aBK«zTtb|#rH in
ROM don't tako up thai pr-^eisoia^ RAM your pjogxam will ne^d.
Ab a bcrnu^, yon won't tiavo ro w%Hte time Teloadmg the itu^nitor
every time 3 piece of m^chind code crashes on ypu.
9^t«g¥tuTun«r's ^oolh^at
(Sapefpownr) Elf .96
A full and vrelf impLemci^Eod series of commands. Theresa a
tmilt-^iEi mhii aasen^iei, and ihe 4€4 ROM oEferE m^my of th«
wmmfiikdA m^sxii^ from BASIC 1.0,
TMlJdt
(Bwl^g«^} ££S.f 5
A taiy setectidn of commands, mt^si of ihem aim^d ai debugging
And the l\k^. OJQTers Hitie fnore than the Utopia toolkii atid has
noiii^ of tha dlkk u^tiea.
(Jjiaor) £39.95
A sirong but very conventional assenUsler/moiiitor 'with buik-ln
aditfir. Can also assemble tottrca co4?e embedded in BAS^C.
Uke ibm BBC Micxo.
JLm««ni^ier/l>iBaB9eiTiLble-r/ndaitir&r
tSnp^zpower) £2i J5
SiimkT to ^^3x^m^ but quirky and poorly errorHiapped - bui n
m £10 ctieaper. Cornea on tW4 ROMa-
resetting the maehirLe.
U you can't alter th(> ROM. what can. you do with it? The
answer is, yon can run the program stared in it. 'Stored' here
meajis fixed in the ROM by the majnufadujcxs this fi^^irtg is ^
once-and-for-all job, often referred to as buxning in'.
USING ROMS
That's enough for now on the theory of RO*fc Oka nexi iJung to
cover is what you do with one to get it working.
WTien you switch your Arnold on you've already got two
ROMs working for you, or three if youVe got a disc drive.
These ROMs carry programs to mate Arnold behave useMly -
put mess^ages on the screen, obey BASIC commands, operate
the disc driv^ and so on. Chances are you didn't evfln realise
that these things were programs. After all^ you don't have to
load them in or anytliing; they're jitat there when you svuiich on.
That's nothing to do with the sort of programs they are though -
it's because they're stored in ROMs.
To look at. a ROM is ju^ a flat brown rectangle with a row of
little metal lege down each side. It's small - the picture shows it
actual size - and quite fra01e. If you touch the legs you rt&k
damaging ihe ROM's Utde silicon innards with everyday sialic
electricity from your fingers - or more prosaically, you could
simply bend the legs out of shape by being clumsy.
Cleejfly* yoor KOMs are going to need to bo housed
nuo.
sonbewhere safe. The on^s that came buQt in \o roar Arnold axe
plugged into special ROM sockets on Arnold'^ curnif board. If
yoti wantedp you could simply gpen Arnold up and swap some
otliei ROM for ihe one that handlesi Locomotivi^ BAiSIC. That way
- on{% everrtMitg was safely put h^dk together - you could
simply plug in, switch on and you'd b« lookifig at the ROM
progmun rach^r than BASIC-
Tm iiot suggesting llial you actually do Mm - m foct, tbera
are gome viery good rt^a^ons why you shouldn't. For starters it'll
void your guaranty. Secondly, you may well wajit to Me BASIC
again aotaie time, and that would mean having to swap thi^ ROMs
back, [n practice, a ROM will only stgjid so much plugging and
impluggiivg before its legs snap, in otheE words, you're going
to have to find somewhere permanent for any new ROMs to live,
and for (he sake of your guarantee it liad bener b^ ouiaide
Arnold's case.
ROM BOARDS
Wh^t we're after is a box which is strong enough to protect
your ROMs, has sockets for a &ir £ew of Ihenfi, and connects up
with Arnold nic&ly . Such a box is called a Sid^wMy^ MOM Bo^d-
Ttvt ^Bideway^' bit just means Arnold can switch between the
.dilEerent onboard and addltioiaal ROMs without you having to
plug and unplug fchem the whole time.
In theory, you coiiJd connect Arnold to a very large number
<rf ROBfs at; any one tiine - over 230 of Suem^ in fact - but there
ajte practical limitations to this. The largest boards only takes
eight ROMs at a tune, and you can only 'daisy -chain' so many
separate boards together before you stait getting power
probletns-
Aa well m plugging ihe ROM in the rigfct way roundL,
without breaking ii, there are a couple of other things you need
to get ri ght wZiati you^re setting things up.
Firstly^ you have to d>«)^se which socket to put the ROM in ~
and that's not quite a$ easy as il sounds- PuitiDg Ihe ROM in the
wrong spocket can stop Arnold from gettiiig m itn or even mop
other ROMs &om working properly. This can be pretty techn-
ical stuff, and ROM board manuals rarely explain Qungs pro-
ROM Applicotiofis
AztiOT's WP suita anil Sup^rpower'f MAihng Isist both benefh
from having all thai RAM k»r data itor^gt? II ^ ^ematire is. an
msEpmmvm CF/M apfihcstloc, you ru^ ind thi^ pric^ pEvfiy
loo.
For Aiaiiy p««|dii, this u anongh yattaoh in iitaJf lo buy i lOM
board. If a a qji^liiy prodva and ^r^ry iaaiiod.
Tltii Ptotaxt add-on offers niail m^xga, backiprDond priRUn^
I qiuttt a few odifir goociisi.
I it'a nuiife, this ffpeUjng elij»dc«r c^n ba tz»d witfi i
i«nify qf popuiv WFk. Gomm o&oipl&to with dielioaary didt
Uct
iaiabaa« pfogram that woito waU and Gttt. tioi
Duaybv, but vary iiaabiL
*Z-
perly. Hopafiilly, the ROM Numbers section later will make this
a bit deajer.
Having chosen your socket and plugged (he ROM in, you'U
then have to switch the socket qfi. On some beards thi$ is a
matter of flicking a switch, while on others you have to bridge
across two pina using a biile pla^c-coaled connector. The nile
ohl liu4 otte is really simple - jq%x mu^ always turn a socket on if
yon put a ROM in it ajf^d turn it off if you take the ROM out again.
SUPERPOWER BOARD
MicxoP6wer. £34.95
The old Superpower board was designed for the 464, and could
only use ROM numbers in the range 0-7: This was clearly
unsatisfactory for nse with ihe 684 and 6128. so ihey have now
produced this selectable board for the whole range of ma-
ctun€3. It has eight ^ocke^, as opposed lo seven on their
original boatd, and you can now switdi the board between
numbers 0-7 and B-I5. Solder freaks can easily modify this to
give ROM numbers up to fi3, though this is imlikety to prove
very usefuL
The board dings to the expansion pon^ and having no
other support it does teiad to wobble a bit. h Is a bit on the heavy
side for this kind of oonnectiort, and the weight i$ «^te tugh up.
Searing all thi^ in mind, the connection is surprisingly reliable,
but you'll stiH get a fail number ol failed power-tips and similar
asm oyances .
Access fo the ROM sockets is made very easy indeed the
bade half of the board siitiply pulls oS. The sockets are switched
on bf the u$e of pl^tstiocoa^ed linking pieces. White diis makes
for considerable Qexibility in the use of the boards it does mean
you've got to look after those lirtks if you switch sockets off at
any stage. Another problem with iemcvii\g ROMs is simply tbe
position of the board within Ihe case - it's just too deep to be
able to get al easily. YouH end up levering against the case and
GOOD NEWS
^ Lots of sockets.
^ Offers yon some Ugli
ROM numbers.
P- Good docuttientatian.
P- Easy access to ROMs.
BAD NEWS
P Heavy, and prone to
wobblimg.
P Switching and removing
ROMs can be fiddly.
damaging it. or having to use a ROM removing tool#
The documentation that comes with the board is goodp
siting oul essential informaTion clearly and telling you pretty
much all you need to know. Overall the new board is good but
not cheap Jt would have been better as a free-standing unit, but
it is the only bc^rd around to offer you a crack at ritose high
ROM numbers. If you've got a 464, however, you'd do well to
look al the old seven-socket board. It offers you as much as you
could use of the larger boord^s power, it's dieaper and it
doesn't wobble half so much.
KDS BOARD
KDS Electronics, E3$
The KDS is ^ free-standing board, relying «i jtmt table for
support rather ih^m Arnold's expansion bus - ©T that's the
theory. Unfortunately, the cable oonnecting ihe board to your
An^old is very short: so short, in lact, that itcsm't reach the 464 's
port with the case resting squarely on the table. If you don't
want the board to dangle from the escpansion buE, ycii'U need to
prop ii up with a book or the like.
The reason for this short c^le has to do with the 464 disk
drive, ff you want to use the DDl-1 with a ROM board, or My
dher erpan^on port peripheFal, yotjTl have lo plug its inier-
foce into the peripheral's Ihroiigh-coimectot. Since the KDS
board's ihrough-csonnector is on the board itsell, this means that
the DDI-I has to communicate with yoi^r 4€4 down the length of
6m boaid^s connecior cable. Now, the DDl-l doesn't like having
to use long bits of cable - so the ROM board cable had to be
^iook«i»««w«iofc AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 19S6 27
►
kept short qi you wouldn't be able to use the DDI-1 with it C<^\
The small, chunky case houses a meagre live sockets. To
get At th^ni you h^^^ to tnm the case upside down, uftscrrevv the
base plale - no easy maner on the review copy - and flip the
entire board out into youT hand, This is awkward enough when
GOOD NEWS
1^ Conv-PiLLiisntDIP-aiiritcheE
tax htmiilg Bockets on or ofL
BAD
NEWS
► Only ofltrp five »ock«ts»
and their ROM no. 8 u«
fuced.
► Difficult to get Btt the
sockets to inBert/reiTLOVe
ROMi.
P- Inconveniently short
connector cable.
P- Poor documentation*
ib© board's £?mpiy, but with ROMs ui the end s{>ck«t9 you'U liiid
you Kave real problems.
The sockets are switched on and oil by a set of DIP
switches, but the single paga of docmneittSition give« no dug
about the ROM numbeis of the sockets. As it tumi out, Ihey
simply provide ROM numbers IS. This makes 1h*5 boiiTd rather
less useful than the old seven^ocket Superpower hoBtdt and £)
more esEp^nsiv^^
ROMBO
£29.95 £1 P&P
from M. Sharp, 62 MeftdDwrbftak^
Ladywell, Livingaton,
WLothlan EIt54 €EL
This great Uttl^ board oames in a rugged free-Standing cas^p
oonncclcd to Arnold's expansion porf with a good length of
ribbon cable. There's a th rough -connoctor on the case to hang
peripherals on. and another on the expansion connector itself
for anything that can't cope with long cables - neatly overcom-
ing the 464 disk interface probliim aomewhj^t better than the
KDS board.
You can twitch the eight ROM sockets between numbers 0-
7 and 8-15 by moving a Supeipowei-stfl^ link, but for tumiai-
gindividual sockets on and oH Jtomho has eight tmy DIP
switches. The hd-£astening screws undo easily, and there's no
problem gelting at the sockets to remove ROMs.
The documentation is on the light side, but does tell you
everything you nee<i to know about the board itseli It otily falls
short on general irtformation about ROMs a common enough
fault to be sure.
Tliere isn't too much else to say about the board, really. It's
well made, and looks like ii could stand its shana of rough
handling. The expansion poit connectioit nftv^r caused a
moment's difficulty, and the board was gen ci rally a pleasure to
use - I'U be sorry to have 1o send the review copy back, lo be
quite honest.
G Q D
II E W S
8 A D
NEWS
P- Elgltt soekets, turned
on/otf by DIP-swilclies.
^ ROM nnmbers lip to 15
available.
^ EajBy to insert and
remove ROMs.
► Makes a reliable
connection with the
e^cpiMAsion poirt,
^ Cdsia £SlflBH tfa^n die
Superpower board.
P' No ROM numbers above
15 - but then who needs
them?
W^ 464 owners mtght still be
better off saving £S and
getting the old Superpow&ir
boaxd.
PLUG IN AND G#
= ROM NUMBERS
Tb&onOcsllr. Arnold cmh ccapp
wMi up fo 232 dEOeifizit ROMs.
For Ins oiwn pujpoaee hm oaes
ttumbifris to tell them apAit.
Timmm MOMNmnbejis run from
to 2Slp bmi toK pifactical puf-
po«c^ w«'re going to be inu^es-
ted in die fii«t A (ie ttumbeis 0-7)
on a 4Mp or the finl 16 (jmuii-
ben 0-19) on a 664 or 612&
In both amm, you've got lo
watc^ out for dMerent ROMs
having ttve ume tmniber. Ef two
ROM» 'ctaoii' tik^ lids. Amold
can't g«t at either of ttiem. Yofi'd
have to be pretty coxeleH to St
two ROMi in sudi m way lls«t
thvy daohfid with eadi other;
the danger is thzt one of your
ROMs is going to clash with an
dniboaid or peripheral ROM. If
y^TO^ve got ^ disk drive, lor
example, you can't give a new
ROM the number 7 - hmtmmm
that's 4lre^7 taken by the diik
ROM.
Other eikaimples are given
m (bm diagram. The crowded
Eegkm is from to 7^ but wbat
you do about this depends on
which machine you've got.
^64 and 61 ^8
We'll get the easy bit out of the
way tost. You can, aJntom with-
out exception^ give any ROM
you like any spare number in
the range to IS, You can leave
gai^ in the numbering without
the sllght^t problem, so it's
bett to forget about the
crowded 0-7 area ahogether.
Ton will need a board that can
give you those higher ROM
nuff^ben though.
nmigm get much more com-
plicated bum number 18 np^
wards, WD it's best to trtay below
this. Yoo're very unlikely to
ineed ftua nymy ROMat but if you
do youll need a good m^tnu&l to
help you.
4M owitttrs
Tlungs are a bit lLarde:r witt
4Ate^ hm you sltouldn^t iLavo an]
probleitP if fo^ bDow thesi
guidffriiine*.
ROM* ccsne in two mail
Idndi, fyjm^ound ^£id ba<±
gr&uM^id, U ibe documentstioi
with Oie ROM doeto't give yoi
specific fitting mstrtidiOifeiSj I
vriU j^ortnally teU you which of
thaw two kinds the ROM is
Don't vrorry about Qie differ
m\cB between the two; all yot
need to know is how to fit thern
Background RC^Ns aict
simple - they can go anywlien
in the range 0-7, provided thef
dont clash with anything el^
Ttiis liar jrows your optiooB dowt
a bit if you've got a disc drivt
K232 rad all aona <d c^Hbm
dungs finod.
Foreground ROMs are a M
more complex, Tliey can gi
attywhfire in the fiiU 0-29
raiig^, provided there axe ai
unused ROM numbers lo«ii
down. For example, yoa coul
give a foxegxoilcnd ROM ^
number S7 and Amold woui
be abl# 10 run wiy programs
stored m it - provided fhes
were ROMs tor all of numbers It
6e. tJiiplug wy ROM in da
range^ number 31 for exampli
and ROM S7 wiH become 'invif
ible' to Amold: he won't knot
it's there, and you won't be abt
to use it.
Some ROM manuals doa
tell you what kind of ROI
you're dealing wUh, or gtve j^
fitting instructions. T%^ two cf
tiotts are to ejipenmeni wiih ik
ROM - which probably meat
plugging and unplugging it i
oouple 0i timfis - or to pho*
the manufachiren, 7%e latu
not only savfbs wear and eftct
bui also gives you the dkaitce I
complain in no unc3erta,bfi t&rm
about the documentation t
2S|ULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
- BASIC normally liv^ here
-Skywave RS232
-" Snicon cTisc operaling system
and Pac« R5232 (Honeyterm)
- Amstrad BS2a2, Pace RS232
(Horieyview)
- Disc operating system
Dramatic News
for Amstrad Users.
Pbcket WordStar
for under £50
Pocket WordStar is the specially tailored version of the world's best known word
processing package, WordStar, Its popular success means that it is now obtainable at
the unbeatable price of £49.94 inc VAT and available for Amstrad users on the 6128,
PCW 8236 and 8512.
Pocket WordStar enters textj edits, corrects typos, reformats, paginates, underlines
and so much more . It includes a mailmerge facility for mailshots and addressing.
Available from ail good Amstrad stockists.
MicraPra.
MicroPro laiematioELiI Ltd|
29 31 High Street,
WiiYibledonVlllagt,
London ShWigaBY
Telephoni:: 01-979 1122
':-^->v.,V^
fihck^
-.-/•v.
Speclfifiitlons ^ -^^.7
CPU Memory: 56K of IL^M is rtquired
PCciwr VtbrdStar can operate wiih one disk
drive coma inin gar least i20K
AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 29
If you thought ther« were plenty of ouembler/monilor
packages for the Amstrad, you'd have o pomt. Htsoft
orrd Picturesque^ Discovery and Hewson Consultants
all hove their offerings at a computer store near you|
ond between them they offer a fair sefection of
different styles. If you thought there was no need For o
new packager on the other hand, Td have ta di^ogree
with you « but then, I've got o copy of latser G&m'vs,
Thi$ Oasis/Ocean fQ offering is incredibly powerful,
and the nnarket is just going to have to moke room for
it.
t
1
WI^BS^^^
S^SiSSiS^
i
wt^!
PURE GENIUS
Andrew Wilton is knocked out cold by a new package for machine code
programmers.
THE EDITOR
The aseembler has a l>uiJl-m sourcs c<3de editor, and Ms will
piQbably be your first contact with the syatem as a wlioiij, it'll
also be your fir si tasre of Gonius's individttal style. It's a mixture
of Ime ^j\d acreen editor ^ which Oajsis clciiim offers tixe beat of
each system. At (irsl It seems diatmclLy odd, but you soon m^^i
to see ^hat they mean.
It*s noi ea$y lo describe how ihe editor works, bec<iuse il's
i£> umueuaL You can use it just liko* fiASIC. giving each soitrce
code ^atement a line number aiid LISTmg the program every
so often. You'd hardly know th<* editor had another side, until
you lype in a piece of noi\sense. Immediately, the editor marioj
the error with gi large and descriptive mesaage - even if it was si
prqgra,m line that you typed incorrisctly. What's more, you can
than tnove the cursor back up to tha incorrect liner correct it
and the error message disappears again.
Moie pawediilly, the editor stores everything that derails
off the top of the screen fly moving the cursor upwards you c^ui
bring this text back on screen, running up ill rough previous
lisiLngs, deleted Imos and the like. Ail this text cam be used -
iTiQve ihe cursor on lo a commands edit it if ^e^^^smry* hit
RETURN and the command'^ obeyed a^ if you'd ju»! typed il in.
What's more, the text scrolls oxlromely fas I, beating Prof^xf by
aome way and knociking spots off tno^t editoTs/ WPs.
The purists among you might object to the use ot line
numbers which Genius demands ^ but there le a lot of flexibilLty
here. Numbers ;irc necessary p but not for every line. You catt
gioup lines logether in paragraphs or pages all with just the
one number. lather than getting in the way, the numbers help
you organise yonr programs - and they make light work of
block deletion, of course.
ASSEMBLER AND PHOENIX
AM^embly can be to and from diak, tape or memory^ and in the
tatter case is very iml indeed. The speed comes chiefly frotn
the way that ihe editor checks program lines for syntax errors
as you type them in. This allowa it to tokenism tho sQurce code
that is, to compress it into a much smaller space than it would
normally require - and tokeniaation make$ for very fast
assembly.
The afifif^mbler can handle ail thu Zilog-recognised
mnemonics, and none of the unofficial ones, 'niis ift quite
delibe rater and very encouraging. Some assembler authors
allow lor nnofllcidl mnemonics, because they provide an extra
selling point in adverts. In practice, unofficial mnemonics are
utterly worthless and should be avoided at all costs. Because
Oaais onqinally intended Genius aa a tool for tticir own use,
they stuck lo what was aclually useful.
A^ well $m macros and condilionaJ assembly, botli well
handled* Gemus supports a high-tevel language called
PHOENIX. Thii! is of immense value if you wan: to teat out
aspects of your program, or even write the fmiahcd arficle with
it. It compiles to stand-alone Z80 code, and runs at a healthy
pace. It is, however, fairly tough to uso rather retniniacent of
C, and not at aE a language for the faint-hearted.
There is a greal deal more to deal with, including selective
assembly of library routines and a comprehensive set oE
asaembler directives, but space is short. Instead we'll turn our
attention to the Genius monitor, which i& perhaps Qte more
important side of the package.
THE MONITOR
Tve never been a great one for monitors myself. The conven-
tional monitor is a very clumsy tool when it comes even to fiiirly
simple bugs. On Those aubtle, eluaivi? bug^ that cfop up all lOo
often, they are almost completely useless. On any sizable piece
of code, single-steppmg through the whole program can take
hourg or even dAy$.
Often, you know to some extent where the problem lies.
You might know, for instance, that the bug lies in one
frequently-called routine or that it cormpLs a particular area of
memory. With a normal mom torn ihis knowledge does tioi help
you a great deaL h's comforting to know thet professjonal
prograrrbmers have these problems too, bui it's belter still thai
Qa^is did something abot^l it. To be precise, they wrote a brand
new kind of monitor.
For a start, the monitor can do everything a normal monitor
can do. It can diirnp memory, it can disiisaomblt^ to screen,
printer and tape/disk, and it can single step in the normal way.
It can, indeed, single step through ROM routines. It can also
slow-run through RAM and SOM, with a good rang^ of options
covering the way an which it handles aubroutinoa and updates
tho screen.
30 JULY 1986 AMSTEAD ACTION o«i-ipi-
As for bieakpainis, you can choose from 17 dJifferent types.
These cover corLtmiiing in differ eti I slow-ninning iticdi^g, li^e of
dowTL-counteis and aJso switching back to normal, full-speed
nmning. This means that you can. isolate a particular siib Toulinc
to be run slowly, stopping after a set number of calls if you wish.
All very usefiiL $tuif, you might think, but nothiing ajiiasing;
If you want something amazing, you'll need to use the monitor's
btiUt-^in Analysor. This pravides you with ten stop conditions
which are fuDy programmable - by which I mean^ you get a
dialect of Forth to program them m.
THE ANALYSER
The idea is quite simple. Every time the monitor perfomns an
instruction umder slow running, if tests r^ach stop condition to
see if the bug has occurred. H the bug corrupts the screen, you
simply set up one condition to check for anything which writes
to the ActiA&Ti. If parts of the program are meant to write to the?
screen during normal running, you can exempi Ihem in the
condition. AJteniatively, you ean work out some test which
distinguishes between nonnal and abnormal screen write
operations.
The key idea is (he use of a built-in programmij\g language
to define the conditions with. TTie choice of Forth as that
language was determined by spa,ce consid^jaiiona - Forth is
about as small as a language can be - but it also benefits from
being easy to deBCT]b# and learn. If you're ready for assembler,
you should have no problems with the Analyser, If you're
already familiar with Forth you'll find the Genius dialect small
and non-standard, but well suited to the job.
You really can check for just about everything you want
with the Analyser, Oasis include, as ^4:1 example, a stack-
checker to stop your program if you try to RETum with the
stack unbalanced. This in itseli would justify buying Genitus for
mosr peoplfi, but it hardly scratches the surface of what's
possible.
You can set up a safety condition to prevent corruption of
the monitor or yotir own program, to make the whole system
crash-proof. You can check for conlertts of registers, of the
stack, of memory pointed to. Analyser definitions can check for
write and read operations in general, without specifying regis-
ters concerned- In short, you can do whatever you need tD do la
find that bug, quickly.
DOCUMENTATION
Assembler manuals are usual iy a bit on the weak side^ and
inevitably get very technical. The Geruus manual is 150 pages
long, with a thorough and friendly approach that is consider-
abiy ^ove average fox the field, [t comes across, however, as
the weakest part of the package. There is nothing startlingly
new you can do with a manual, so it was bound to suffer in
comparison mth the rest of the system.
That saidp the manual is very terse. The information on
Phoenix, for ^jcaraple, is only barely ade<|U*te. This is noi
ffurpnsmg - after all, 150 pages really isn't enough for such a
complex sutd origirtal system. However, the mainstream sec-
tiozts of the system are very well covered. If you want to
explore, you'll probably just need to experimeni a bit.
The only other cnticism of the manual is its colour - black
text on blue paper This prev^iiTs photocopying the manual but
it does m*%arL vou'll Ftfif^d a r*^;*p:cjr.ahle 3ighr to read it by.
GOfiD MEWS BAD NEWS
^ Sttuining moaltot. ^ The manual cotdd be s
► Fast, powerful asKemblei. itioiiger.
^ Strong, llexiblfi editing of ^ If you've |uEt bought a
source code. dlBerent assembLerp you^
> A high-level compil«4 have to Rtut ^AVln^ all oi
language thai yoa can mix agalsi
with assembler mnemonics,
^ A great price.
dlBerent aBsembLer, you^U
have to Rtut ^avln^ all over
agalfii
THE VERDICT
This package ia so much better than the competition it's hard to
know where to start. 1( you never used the axLra features, you'd
have a good, golid, easy-to-uae system at a very reasonable
price. You would, however, be missing imdreamt-of debugging,
power ^ and a high-level language ihrowri in for free.
If you've already got an assembler, throw it away and buy
L^^er Cenlus instead. If you've been waiting for the definitive
a^emblfir packaged with a truly uftehil monitor and a price tag
under £20, this is it. Buy it.
so WRAT*S A MONITOR?
The problem with programinmg In
modilne tode^ o¥on w}^ or* os-
MiTtibier^ ii thol Ifi viJry dtfRcult
itvff 1e debug. M o ftASiC
proQr^fm is foulty St wili stop ond
^ve yoM on irrror mmSMM^m^ A
buig In a infid^kw o&da program^
however^ ^m normQflY either lock
yoy oyt of thfl computisr or erOah
\^ OHVipl^toly. kh either coie^ i r con
be vflTi^ dEFfkvit to work out what
you did wronQ^ since yovl! hove
lo f«iel or swildi off ti? rngafn
To Hsi^ ymi- Wft ihh kmd o^
thrf^g cst4, you'B probably find o
momfof cofnes Ifi hnildy . TWi Tt o
progfom Ihot hetpi you look o*
piece? of mochSnt code tm^ tvn
tham Dfi* mtructibrt at a Hfmt. A
good mcmffor wlH imfoHly ifKlude
o df$o$$^mbhf, wlhicK con Ivfn
Dpcodo:! bodk frtto mftefTt?>fiic5.
This h etseiiHal for hocklrio Info
other pe^plv't pr^roFns^ ond
very useful fof yA^orombtirtg your
own.
WHAT IS AN ASSEMBLER?
If you dd rnudi progfomming m
BAStC, you'll kmjw Wt wt the
Ideot longuoge For >ome pur-
poi#5^ If ydu># vrltlng on arcade
game or a word pfoceisor, for
exomple-, ^SC jutt Em't fait
enough Id glvA you o worfhwtiHe
j^rogram.
The probtefT! % Arnold's
computing power tl provld^4 by
his ZeO chip - ond ftie ZBO ji^t
doesn't understand BASSC the
only [DnguOg« it u^erilatldi h
Z80 fTHachaoB codw - ond that's
iusf o lood of nwmberj os for as
mdit bymon bai?igi Dr4
corKfifried,
4F ym^ write a program In
BASIC Arnold hos lo trc^mtefe the
progrorn prislrvcijoiftft OS he comei
t^ ihem. JH% trqri^iafiOf^ u^olly
loket Arnold qui^e o bif longer
Ition oetuotty doing whof the
tommondi te)j him. If you write
progroms ^ mochlne code * Hue
ZSO'e own longuoga^ rftfrt»mb«r —
fhcre's no need for aji thi* fnef*!^
tient trariilotioa Arnold knows
whot fiKichin$ code me^mt w he
can gflt on ^\ih obeying St ei It 1*^
Modiine code moy moke
things e<isy for Arnold j. bur it
mak«s Ihmgi almost impo^^jbie
for you. Being m-<^4w up lalely ol
nuiTifeeri^ rnoehffMi code ]mhvc^
tkwis are eiciremely difffcutt to
remtmbtr, If yo^ wai^t to ffrttN-Ji
frcHfs o syfarouHne^ ^or exorFipl»^
l+ie BAS3C commsind it *'RETUftN'\
The fnochiF%e code equivolent of
thh Is rhe rolhfrr 1e** memoroble
"&C9''- To remofTsber »v»r4il
hur>dred of fhew nvmbers - or
opcpdm^ at they or? p^nop#rly
knowTii — h obvious^] y no nosy
rtiofterr
Tb? s^uMon is tm v» on
osi^r^fvr. Ihli fillo^i yoi^ f&
Twtlte your progfom r^ot 01 op-
codes bul r ath«r a% mn^irfon^i^ **
Bosy- 1&- remenrbor o bbrevidtkj*it
which rsmiiid you of wtiot the
Fnslivet^ofti octvat^y do, Thys In^
tlead of ^'&C9 ' ysu type 'JfETV
becouse ^^AC9*' tells Ihe Z80 lo
RETum ffon? o lubroutjnif. Similar^
ly you fype "LOlft" fof iooO,
Iftcremenl and Repeot - which ft
rattier eazl^r to rerrwriiber then
'a^EOBO'^ the eciuivolenl opcode.
Oixe yoti've vMTilten yow
progront In ryinernonlc form — ll^f
h called the f^uMxv code - ih*
□ iivfinbler h'-Ofiilarei the
mnemonics ifllo opOG^es. lh\% pro-
dtpces u rsTfeochi-rw code progroin
whkh Itie Z80 con undorttond^
wWwjt^ ycuf holing to leom «
whole lood of those s^co^pfehe*
nuble opcodfti. Th* Ani£h#d
opcode pro^r-ain h edited th^
obfi^f code^ ond rhe pr^eis ol
N/rntng source code hfo abject
cod& IS caUed €ff^^mh!/ - vhteh
tfxpSa^ why tin oss^rtibler i^ so
colled, a . ::'<
R
.»»ri. ikl^TK AD ACTtOK JULY 196631
Master of the Database, Andy Wilton, takes a look at this competitor todBc
CaocKnTL fit*t mftd* A nam*^ tor themselves in Amstrad circfeB
with C&rdbox, an extremely simple databaie, You cotild cull
this Utffiiit r^&as& af thmir& a database - but that's where the
aimiJarity with Cerdbox ei^^s, Ctandojr i is 30 complex and so
powf^rful tha^t 'databftAe' ii a mis^Es^ding term lor it.
Tht^ sds cail it a 'database mafiagement and reporting
syamm", and this isn't Just a flowery way al saying 'database'
Condor doeasn't jiisl ojrgarui« your data for you - it helpsyou
cre^t^ systems to oFgamae your dati with, if that doe^Hfi't m^^n
m^db. to yon , ju3t beajf wi th m^.
GETTING STARTED
As is njOfW commmililace witk PCW applicatioEis, the Ciuid<Jr
iRa^ter disk carn«s a SUBMIT file to transfer e^iseritial program
files to the M: driv©. Unf&rtimaiely, on an tm^^panded 8256
th^ire is dimply iiot enough room for all the necessary files, bo
three overlays - around 16E, all told - liave to go on your data
diskr This means you'Te got the choie of transfer nng the
ov&rtays onio ev^ry disk you wa^t tg Use for data. Forttm^t&lF.
the master disc carrier two SUBMIT files which do this job for
you
Things still aren't any tDO easy even once you've done this.
C<^dor is so large you can't fit CP/M and a fuU set of prograTn
fila^ miQ IWK, go you can't make yourself a turnkey disk. Ttiis
isn't a probleiu as s^cht bul it is a bit annoying.
THE SYSTEM
Once ytmve booted CP/M and tised CONDOiLSUl to set things
in motion, you're presented with a copyright screen and a
prompt for today's dale. You don't have to enter a date - joist hit
i^tnm to move on - but WU proir^ very useful for some
applications.
It you were expecting a command menu lo appear 3t this
point, you're m for a di^appointrrtent All yoQ g^t is a system
prompl-- 'A»^ rather than CP/M's 'A>\
The ferst command you 11 want to use is DEFINE. This ^et$
up ^ datss^t - a group of records - and allows you to def^^ a's
record card. A$ your &m oontact with Condof^ ^ting
controls, this card -definition doesn't bode weU. For a siart. the
cursor keyE aren't configured for obvious upniown-left-right
controls. This isn't too surprising; what really annoy? i$ the way
the aJt-key combinations are non-Wordslar. Indeed, the move-
ment keys don't form a diamond or any other natural pattern. If
you like SETKEYS, you^H love Condor,
Th^ lack of keyboard configuration isn't particularly sur-
ptititLg, and there's an on-screen help line for some of the more
important keys. What is raiher stranger is the way Candor only
uses a 243c80 screen. Keys can be r defined, but the small
screen looks to be something you're stuck wiEh-
Oncfe you've set up the dat^et'^ card format, youll b^
prompted tor the types erf tfce different fields. There's a good
range of these types, indudiitg Jul^n (eai#ndar date) and
Money The former, being day-motith-year in format , will
plea$e the anti-Americans among you: the latter, being selected
using the "T key, will not.
USING THE DATASn
Having defined your dataBet, you're going to want 01 put some
32 JtJL Y 1 9S6 AMSTRAD ACTION
data LP to it, To get onto the data eutiy screen you use the ENTER
'^dalas^t name> commajid from the *A>>' prompt. The record
card appears on the screen, and you simply type your data into
the relevant fields. Of course simply' here is only relative -
you've still got those miserable editing keys 10 contend wilh.
Up to this point, as you may h^ve gathered. Coffrfor i» fairly
unfriendly. Pulling it al its wor^t the program IS cumbersome td
set up. it's command- line- rather ihan menu-driven. 11 fails to
use the [uil PCW screen and its editing controls are compleiely
^rbismry. Anyone dismissing ihe package now. however^
would nu^s out an an awful lot.
Wheit if dpmes to ::sn\g {h& data yoii ve typed in, Coiidors
pretty impressive. Suppose yoxi^ w^nt to see a Usi of cuslom.ers
on a subETiption fel da Tasc-t called SCES, for example.From the
A>>' prompt just lypq in islST SUBi> BY SURNMME INITMLS
STAST.DATEFiNlSH.DAft:, where SURNAME etc are the names
of the fields you want on the list. Up comes the list m neat
colimuis. one for ^ch fields c&mplete with column headings.
For a hard copy equivalent of this, there s a PRINT command
which works in escacdy the same way.
Nothing too impressive in that, you might think: nice^
natural syntax certainly ^ but hardly an earth-shattering com-
mand. The natural cominand syntax carries over into other
commands, however- Typing in SORT SUBS BY SURNAME
INITIALS START.DATE FINISHDATE takes a UtUe thijikmg time
on the computer's part^ but works fine. If you iiBT the SUBS
dalaset again, you'll see that it's now been sorted into
alphabetical /numeric/ date order by each of these fields, in
order of precedence. In other words, "Jones* comes before
'Smith', 'J-^^Jon^s' before J.B.Jones' and so on right down to the
order of the finishing dates an two otheTwise idontical entries. If
you'd told it to, Condor could have sorted by a further 38 fields.
If you think about it. you'll now see one of the reasons
behind the u^e of a command line to enter instructions. A menu
might be quicker on single instructions r but it would lose out by
some way on a command hke SORT - and we iiaven*t got onio
the complex commands yet.
SEARCH COMMANDS
IE you want to alter a given lecord, you can easily do so with the
UPDATE command. Suppose you discover r after typing in a
large number of addj^sses, that Bristol is in Avon ratfeer than
Somerset. Type UPDATE SUSS WHERE dTY IS BR^TOL, and
the program offers you all the records with Bristol addresses.
You can leat through fhem, modify them lo fOui taste or pxmt
them an out.
if you want to do rather more with your chosen records
than UPDATE allows you to, you can use the SELECT command.
Continuing the previous example, you can type SELECT SU^
WJffiJtE" C77T IS BRISTOl,. This creates a temporary dataset
called RESULT, which consists of aU records wi^ Bristol
addresses. You can LIST, PRINT or UPDATE this RESULT dataset
and generally treat it like any other dataset - but this is not
necessarily a good idea.
You see, RESULT is only temporary. Its current contents
will l>e lost the next time you use SELECT or certain other
commands. This isn't always undesirable. You caiL for Instance,
use SELECT RESULT WHERE.., to narrow the selection down
still further. If you're going to want the RESULT contents in the
long term, however, it's best to put them sc?mewhere sale. 7^
do Ihte, you lue the SAVE commwid. SAVE MRISTOL, foi
example, w^suld pul ill* contenia of RESULT into a new daui^st
csil^d BRISTOL.
GETTING MORE ADVANCED mm
So far the commandB have all b&eA v^ry iiatiiTal and logical^^
ifeon they've n^t hmen doing anyihing very coinplex. From now
on, thingi get raihei more complex, Thi« is the direct result of
OoMdoi^^ power and flexibility. The tact it m^e* Mmm& at alt ia ^
tribute to th^ mftAiiai^ ^nd ih^ n^loral ayniM of the sypijem itaolf.
The ideal system for handling diia involves keeping Qne
mfiusier dat^set coniainiitg gtU the information used, and vanoiia
iaieUile daia^^ts to update and modity it. The key idea i$ one of
i^ety: aiterationa and additions axe n%^^t mad# to the maateT
daijijiet directly, sq Lh«re is far le^i risk of wiping om vitaJ: ddta^
^teadp you te^d all new item^ of data - and reviiiona to
exist tng itema - into the satellite d alalia. Ar the end of the day,
these piianges can be tiansf^f ]ted to the majter dataeet.
Ttier^ aie other advantages to this ayatem than just safety.
Tot one thing, the saaiellit^ dataaeti oan be specialiaed. cut-
down versions of the full-size master.
A paymenia daiajet, for mjiiajaee, nead only carry ihe
afnouj^t paid arid enough other fields to identify th& cuslomer
concerns dr The other customer detatli on the maii^i dataael
eard - even the mo^ey owetd by the customer prior to the
payment ^ are iirelevant for these purpotea. Powerful Qexibla
commands can trans ter the dara acroi^ and compule new
£grurea for the amounts now owed i^tc,
This cut-down card technique makes it imm^diateiy clear
exactly what you re aitpposed to do- If you're presented with
the maiftter card and all the cuatom^r's detail? on It^ you'll have a
job fielding the right held let alone working out what form the
data's meant to take. The paymenta card, however, wilt be
much less cluttered and can carry explanatory notes.
AUTOMATtON
A division is alarting to em^ige in the use of Candor. O^ the
one hand, you have The more experienced user who sets up the
diHeient data$ots and their respective cayds; and on the other,
you havt^ the operator who tsimply fills out the relevani car da as
part of the office procedtire. The problem comes at the end of
the day, when the relevant rranafer and cOtt\ptttation commands
need to be entered.
The transfi^r commajids are fiot easy things to uae. The
choice of command wordfi and the syntax they uiM& are very
helpfiilt but Ihe underlying coincepis ate not always ea^y to
grasp or eicplain. While I could give examples, I don't have
anything like the apace Fd need lo explain them. The manual is
e««eniiaJ here, and it j$ ^m ^iiormous piece of work. Since only
Ihe more in|)er«sled: tas^r is going to wade through all. of it, thefe
has to be aome way of sknpUfying the tranMerral ta^k (oi: omuM
operator?.
There is such a way, and it is caUed the command
jsrocwdure fife. This is a aet ol inslruetions for Condor m follow,
|] can contain conditions, ^s# vajri^J^ileSp display messages and
lake input (torn the keyboard - it ia, in other words, a progxMri,
Any series of instruotiona you could type in at the 'A^>'
prompt can be built into a comn^and procedure. Thua, a
complex sequenoe that tranafers paymenta in and recaloulates
money owed can become RUN PAYMENTS ^ aa f ajt as the
opera lor'B concerned, at any rate. Of course, someone's got to
write the command procedure. This ian't actually a very^ difficult
task. It'a a lot like producing a simple BASIC programme, and
[ you only have to write the thing once.
[ You can carry the automation even further, if you like. By
using the FORMAT command p yoti can create help menus. In
use, the relevant menu option Is selected by entering the
option's number: there is no need to use the command line in
the conventional way- Menu options can lead to command
procedures or to other menus - it's up to you. In this way you
c^m create a whole menu- driven system which completely
msuUtes Ihe operator from Co/idor'scompii^xitj^s.
CONDOR 1
Caxton Softw4T«
£$9.9S, PCW machines onty
DOCUMENTATION
The review documentation was pre-production, but even with
important diagrams missing it e^^plain&d most features est-
tremely clearly. It is not, howev'er, hght reading. The finished
version is, Tm assured, even larger so get your bookshelf
strengthened now.
CONCLUSION
The above account necessarily omits several features. There's
G a D NEW S
►^ Very powerful Indeed.
>■ tffi^r-friendly command
system.
► Can tailor a database
ttystem to your exact needs.
^ Very reasonable price, for
what you get.
1^ A huge manual^ and
Caxton's support hotline^
^ EKchangesfrleB &eely
with other appljcations^.
BAD
HEWS
► Reccsrd entry is awkward,
and contiol keys aare
arbitrary.
p- Only uses 24x60 screen-
^ Heeds work to get at all
that power.
Condoi'A ability to swap filea wilh word processors for one
thing, and it's report-generating capabilities for anoiher. What
it has demonstrated, I hope, is t)u$: Condor i is an extremely
powerful package which goes far beyond what an average
PCW database can do (or you, but it's going to take some e£fort
for you to get the most out of it.
Even with the cut-price edition of dBsse J7 on it's way,
Condor I is easily Ihe cheapest way of getting this kind of
power. If you've got the size of data-handling Job that needs
heavy-duty software, it's excellent value for money, □
AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1988 33
in CPCb, iHM ?««« £19.95 disk
Like the Music Compomr half of Afu^ic Jor, tlus program i& ai
muaic sdilorr. T^e two programs haire rather more ihan ihia in
oom^on, Ml for flow l«f« dett] wiili the iJittAr&ftiC^i t^tween
"fhart ax# m? icai:i« on the A£M!i^l7mf fcr^etri, lAfdeadi ttote axe
a »rias irf tuogte^is^e wtAdowe midenteatj^ th^ lajg^ ^ditmg
ilay«. Th^BB control the editkig and plA)Ft»adE of ^ music til^,
with th^ emphaais on playback. To ^iftct « fiutictkm - tiote
valua, say - the fanctton cuiioir has to be moyad under th^
wiftdow- To do tlua, you have to wm Ihe ntuRAric/fimction
Iwypadi as a aei erf cursor keya, ©for right and f4 tor left
Once tha Miction cyxsoi ii dliacily ujider H^ wimlow, Ihe-
ooMefitii of the window can be altered using !B to increase and
£2 iQ dctcrea»e them. In iOTn« places this ia natui^ and
BiraighOoiward; 18 lengthens the note value, ok apeeda up the
tempo^ On other windowa, however ^ it'5 quite nteaninglasa; if
you're fle)actiri.g £0e handling and simtlajr commandSp you
a£mp!:y have to leal through one way and then the other vmtd yoa
fiund ilie command you want, A menu would have been a lot
simpleir to usm ttmit ihia 6illy ginumckry.
Wtiting and inditing a pm<^ of mujio on Mmstr^l is none too
easy, bvit yon can see and edit aU three pejrts of a haimony on
the o;fi6 fitav^. Thk doe* crerate sezlous probleme in liining,
however^ Suppose you enser four crotcheia in ^ tot^ for one
roic#, and tom quavart in a row in another. Th^y each t^e up
me aame length of rtave, but what happen* when you play the
tune?
The ai^rawei, as I found to luy cost, is that both lines tak^ ths.
aam& length ol time, Minattel pLiya the paisage as
if you d typed in fauif quavers alteroaling
with quaver reits toi the lec^ond
quaveo
through
GOOD NEWS
> Can edit all three parts pn|
the same stave ^
► Allows expressions and
key-change!i In the music.
^ Independent volome
contiols tot the three
<:hannel5.
BAD
NEWS
^ Vftty alow when ediUng
music.
^ Awkward cemmand
seleclion,
► Can be very laborious
■ynchroniilng parts.
^ Weak error^trapping on
difikopeiatlons.
► Offers very poor value
compared lo The Mosie
System.
hall the time, as you might at liral h^ve ^xpeeted th^m to do^ you
ha?e lo space out the crocchets lo take v^p Mice the length ^
stsve.
Of course, if you type in a Une of minans cloee together.arLd
Q^^R f ealise you need to Eit a line of quavers in over the tpp.
you'B have an awfuj lot of spacing out to do. Moral: write the
t\ine down hist on a piece of n^anusciipt paper - Minatt&l is n^
^ suitable tool for composition.
EDrilNG
The biggeai single problem with MiiMml
ii the speed il runs at.
%0
dd\^^
Music Box
The Electric Stndio
JUl CPCs, £9.95 cast £16.95 disk
Electric Studio are well known for their lightpens and graphics
programs, but this music package is something of a new
direction for them. However, what with the liberal use of icons
and the inclusion of a lightpen control option, there's still a
familiar feel to things.
The |>ackage is in fact two aepajrate programs. Music
Composer and Sj^tftesiser. The former is a music editor - the
musical equivalent of a word processor - while the latter is an
envelope designing utility,
MUSIC COMPOSER
The editing screen is dominated by two staves. on& above the
other. The lower one is the editmg stave. It has an arrow-head
cursor, pjdinting to flte place your lira! note i* going to gp. The
cursor keys move this up or down, aEowing you to place the
note anywhere in ^ four octave range.
34 JULY 1986 AMSTRilD ACTION Ai^f^^^.
Note values -
crotchet, minion etc. -
are chosen from a block of icons
to the left of the editing stave. Each of these icons
is selected by a different key on Arnold's numeric/function
keypad. ThankfTiIly the icon arEangement mimics the keypad so
that the top left hand icon, for example, is selected by [7 - the
top left hand function key. Because of this, you can tell at a
glance which key you have to press.
This works very mcely on the 464 and 664. but there's a
slight problem if youVe got a 6138 - because, of coarse, you've
gol a different shape of function pad. This does spoil the
nearness of the icon block idea, but it'e £till easy to remember
which key to press. The only keys ihat have moved are the
decimal point and <enter>: the decimal point corresponds to
the dotted note icon, and <enler> places the chosen note on the
stave, so they re both quite natural keys lor their respective
jobs anyway.
As well as note lertgths. the block carries icons for acci-
dentals - sharps, fiats and naturals occurring in the flow of the
music - and a toggle to switch between notes and rests. This
latter is a nice piece of work^ changing all the note-value icons
into rest aigns of equivalent lengths.
Other keys give you access to slurs, ties and triplets. The
pound-sign key calls up a menu of repeat signs; allowing for a
different ending on the second pass through a passage and -
less useful - for infinite repetition.
BAR LINES
As you add notes to the editing stave, bar lin« axe automati-
cally inserted after the correct number of beats. It's up to you,
though, to make sure that this is poasible - if there's only room
for a crotchet at the end of the bar and you select a minim.
If you're im&tiiig tiiroagh live score you have wtitwj^ ^o fa^r,
'ttuiung tli0 pd9^' from gn^ etav^^ to iht» rtj^jct om ^aoily tsJce fiv^
second:?- TtUfi ia uat because &m prograins doing anytilimg
dft^er. youi uxid**f:jiiaiid - it*** jtt^ ttmt Mimtr^i i* written m B^c.
and: it ta^g^ that Jong to put ail the notee up. one at a^lime. Tc be
EaiTi Miisf£? Bgs is also a Bwic progtarti; the diB^irettce is tbai on
Mm^creJ ii stiow^.
Thftre are tmiikr r^rawing delays if you insert or (telete
not^B on a fairly full ^tavie. Ffobl^rcia with B^ic doA't e^^dwiib
Qluggti^tmoQ^, ^ith^Fi; she disk coinifiands seem to hair@ no error-
trapping at all, so you am eiKp^ct to ioa^ yomr pi^c^s of unu^sio
^very time you try savmg to a full difiic, !o]f ^leaitipl^. I wcisid
ttd-dse you to make regular backups^ but under the dTOHm-
stances I doii^t thiitk that would b^ too hi^lpful.
PACING THE MUSIC
Mi^ aU that, £ have to admit that Mkwtt^ im^ {lom^
very itictj features. You ctan insert crBscendo
£^d aoc^l^rando xnatructiotia
so *& to ^frv^ your pteod t^xpr^ejtton: you C9m ^m: th^. volumes of
the difiereai ifoicea ttuJep&pd^ntiy of aach othei? and you Crtn
Jme-txme the tampo/ Afiotip&i juc^ touch b the way yo^ ean
change key ui th€^ middle of a pieoe - ^ very uMful littie feaeui e
There's no getting aw^y from it thofugh: ihe oii^rail suuc-
Twe of the prograjn ifi just too weak tor nice featujrea to i^deem
it. in a str^igrht fights Muff/r Jpx would win my vot*i before- pricsr
w^ eii^en mentioned. As it m, Mmm^lB price pite it
agaiMi RadfJ:3ird'* Mu^icSyiFf^m- m\A is rfe&Ily
ianTin th^ *ame lo^giue.
Wvoe
lOC.
voQe-
des^Q*^®
AftiSJC BoJf Will 5tOp inserting
bar lines until you fksE the error.
When the editing stave
- ^ is full I it dears to a blank stave again to
make room for ihe next part of your composition. The
old contents aren't removed from the screen, though: they are
aimply moved to the previously blank upper stave. As yoti fiE
up the editing stave over and over again, the upp^r slave
always displays the last few bars written.
For editing purposes, you can Dip baclwards or forwards
through ^e staves u$ing the cursor keys. Notes can be delated,
duplicated or overwritten. There is no insertion facility , but
duplicating a note and overwriting the copy serves the same
piirpoge. It*s a bit clumfiy, as indeed is the whole system of
stave-switching. The upper stave helps overcome the obvious
•where did 1 get to?' problem, but it's no substinate for a proper
•aroQlng stave.
Moving around within a piece of music can be a pretty slow
affair, but fortunately there's a command which allows you to
jump straight to a given bar. To be tmthlul- this was about the
ody use T could find for bar lines the program seems to play
ift noloa of a bar wiih equal emphasis- As for accidentals.
Ibsf haiF^ no ^ed on other notes in the same bar anyway.
Am i»11 as jumping between bars you can switch berween
fhi«« vwoH - Arnold's three sound chaimels. This enable you
to give mmA Toice a different part of the overall harmony.
Unfortniwlrtf you can't write the three different parts on the
•ven view one part while writing another - it can
take a considerable aiHOUnt of forward planning and mental
juggling to get amyttiing but a discord. You'll have few pro-
blems if you just wani to play a tune you already know; but Sw
system Is v&ry lioLiiing tf you're taking to compose something
original.
ENVELOPES
Ton can, at any point, change the tone and volume envelopes
Mloc^ted to a voice. This altera the sound the program makes.
aa if the voice ha.d changed in^tmruents- Unforturtately th^re are
only eight diSerent 'insmiments' to choose between^ and they
aren't terribly exciting either. If you want to alter them to suit
your musical tastes, you'U nead to load the sepaiaie Synthe^^i^r
program.
A simple
utility, SynfIiesi$0r allows
you to draw the overall shape of an
envelope* stretch it inio whatever shape you wajit.
and save a set of the things on tape or di^. You can play a note
with the given envelope as you alter i1, but it can be quite hard
10 tell from this what it would make a whole tune sound like.
There's only one way to find that out. and that means reloading
Music Ccmp&ser. It would have made thmgs much easier if the
two programs had firted mto memory at the same lime*
USING THE LI6HTPEN
The great thing about this package should have been the
hghtpen option, and the way it should make emering and
editing the music so much easier. Sad to say, it isn*t and it
doesn't. For a start, the lighten won t allow you to amply point
at the stave and put a note on it. Instead you have to point the
lightpen at the treble clef and hold the space bar down to jtaise
the cursor - or amoilarly with the bass clet to lower ii and then
hit <entier> to put the note in place.
Furthermore H despite advertising claims of compatibility
mth the DK tronics pen, orjy the Eleciric Smdio Mark H pen
proved sui^bie for operating the on-screen icons out of four
pens that I tried. Even then the pen could only Mntrol a handful
of piogiam functions, the rest reqiiinng keyboard input.
There is, howevei, a joystick option which proved to be
weD thought out and a pleasure to use. You can't operate any of
^e scons with a joystick, though, bui then the function keypad
arrangement works so well there would be little point anyway.
Overall then, a pleasant enough package to use, and one
that can 0ve decent result. However it is not as powerful or as
easy to u&e as The Music System from Rainbird (reviewed in our
March issue).
^ Nice function pad
II contsfols.
►■ Eutomatically inserts
: barllnes.
P- Lightpen and joystick
1= control options.
I ^ Cids only mws TOi«|^|
I composition oi^e^v^i
time, -\
very usefiEiL ./■ .
*- Non-sctolltef iit*|i _
pimblem. J^=^
T„ ««i *«^ AMSTTtftD ACTION JULY 198S 35
▲
▲
According ro the cuiieni Gemini adverts, HMtaG^m was written
speciftUy for the PCW 8256 rather than being ported across
from older machiiiM. If this sounds like DsmGmm iM carefuUy
tailored for the B256, oflermg Feamies ported applications can't
hope lo mafch, Ihal's because the adverts miss out one crucial
Ika - that the pf ograni i« written in Mallard Basic
As such it gains little if anything from being an 63M
oiigiiial, since Mallard ptograma have to work via CP/M ttie
same way ported programs do. There 1» an option to redefine
the fimction keys from within the program, but otherwise the
only apc?ciiil 83B6 feature d^^ilt with is the printer - and hex€ the
assiimption ia ni^de that you'll only ever want to use the printer
supplied with your 8356. Even taking this mugh for granted p the
results aren't speciaciiJarly better than the output o! your
average ported application. Advertising claims aside ^ the big
problem with wTiting a database in Basic is one of speed. The
heavy duty tasks, searching and $orting. tend lo he too slow for
comfort if you're tising a Basic program and « large numbei of
records. DatsCem ge^ round ihis by a system of indexuig ihut
make« for rapid searching, howeiner many records y^a have in
youiGle.
1 \ - -.,
»-:■
§&iuni
Key fields are Ibe Iwsft of the mdeirtng syinem. There are
alwaysn the thmlong behind it goe$. some Geldj^ you aare going
to want to search f&r more often than others. For each of ihese
"key fields' the program keeps an Imdeic, JistUig «11 the records
in Older. So if, for example, you're mamiaining a club member-
ahip lim and have Surname" as a key held, the program will
keep a 'Surname' inde^ whi<:Ji lists all the memb^ra in alphabet-
ical order of surname.
This cuts out almiisl ^ the work of searching. If you want to
browse through the records of all members with surnames
b«5fweeii Jones' and ^Smith\ for eaesmple, the program needn't
check the surname on every record. It simply checks the
'Surname' iltdex, and this immediately gives it ail the inlorm-
ation it needs.
Of course, there is a price to pay for all this. The indexes
take up valuable diak space, for one thing, and they have to be
updated every time you type in a new record. Because of this,
and the limitations of Mallard's EUe handlmg qommands, only
eight Gelds on the card cajfi be key fields out of a possible 32 -
but this is enough for most purposes.
BROWSING
Once youVe run a search on yoar file yoti can browse through
all the records that fell within the search range. You can edit the
individual records found, prini. ihem out or simply Oip ihrough
them on screeit. If the key field seaich gives you too many
records to browse through comfortably, you can narrow your
selection down a bit by including search condiuons for other
ifllds.
You can set these ejctra conditions for any field on the card,
key or otherwise. They can be search rang^ like the 'Jones-
Skallh' example, or search strings - words or phrases which the
im^gram checks a field for.
Unfortunately you have to set up a search range on a key
field K even if you're only interesTed m one of the ordmary, non-
key fields. More seriously, additional searches - even on key
fields - don't have the benefit of indexuig to speed them up.
Witti a large number of records, that Basic could really start to
drag.
VERDICT
The heart of a database is the search^^nd-browse system, and
here Dai^gem is rather patchy. Although very fast on searches
by a single key. extra conditions »oon slow ii down. Also, it can
be very awkward setting up the kind of conditions you want.
Otherwise the program's speed is qmte acceptable apart
from taking quarter of ai4 hour to work out how many records if
can fit on the disk- The main problem in using the program is its
tendency to make srniple tasli^ complex and awkward - for all
the ffirengths of the indexing system, you might well prefer
something a UtUe simpler: Documentation was pr^production,
but quite sufficient as it was.
n
3
o
3
§
I io
I ^
a
B
a
Sr
o
INDEXING
The idea is for the program to do ils searchljig when you type in
a record p rather than waitrng for you to actually perform a
search cortunand. This takes up more memory than the normal
way of doing things, but it does give enormous speed
advantages.
When you create a file, you design Ihe record card from
scratch. For each field you have to entej a title, state the field
type - text< numerical, date or money - and position it on ttie
screen, You also have to say whether or not you want it to be a
fceylleld.
36 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
GOOD NEWS
^ F^pl search by a singls*
key.
^ Faily dsfiiutl^le r«<vidi
caidn
^ Usefnl AZe merger and]
nice calculation i ^dUty.
*witw*Lfd. .
1^ Takes its limc^
Jijiultlplsh^ltey tftaTchet,
'.P- f etf fusy ahotit disk'
^41)f«S.
rldl€tii0usly mlg^w.
*- Guald be ifffittflu f^r
ii ymi ki>nw y*ur :
ajn^junil Mallard AjMi^ic;, :
This package sets oul to solve your itiforinalian l^ondliiig
pxoblems - but it isn't a databasse. It ia in Eact a filnig ^yFtem
intended to oigaiuse your data into a tree slmctuxe. Thi« wovM
be suitable for handliiig a producl list, fox example, or ihe
contents ol a library.
THE CATALOGUE
Your ddtn i^ filed awBy in a pa^JoNgiiQ, Yq construct this you
hairs to divide youx data inio geiieiaJ cdlegorie^i. If you're filing
infoEmataiOn on a book pubLutl^r's tislp Eoreiainpl^, th^s^ might
be 'Fiction' and 'Non-Piction\ Typ« th&sm two categories in and
you'U lt4T€^ a znemii which loaka like ihis:
!
5flv PUfjL niEf U^ ^--iU ni^ ^?3t Kijsi; J ii=r H
MiJllMr'f Lill
4iM: fe5Dr p.a:=-B
1 ■-■ ^stk*H& ^«^DdJ':y '.FfTw\ Jh94 i.m) f
iti*t a *
TTou can now break suiy of dtese entries down ^to n^Trower
'iub-categones\ creating more and more specialised menus.
Each sub-category can be furlher divided i^ Qus way, aiid titie
process continued as tar as yo%t want to go. Ono^ you*ire
opmpleted Ihi^ process, y^u oan then enter a page of data
lafhe^r than a huiher menu.
TREE STtUCTURE
ttm menu/data page ^yiiteiii give$ the catalogiie a tx^e struc-
ture. To find a particular item in the catalogue, you branch
through succ^es^ve unen-ua until you reach ike daa pag^ you we
looking for. However movemtsd within the system is not
confined to tito branching process. Each m^mx or data page hais
an individual 'S>' number^ and typirLg this in will take yo^i to die
pa^e you require irom anywhere in the cat^ogue.
Alternatively, you c^m use the FIND command to ^eajfdh for
all diose data pages wtiich have a particular keywoard. ThJj is
no* a search Eaqdity m the normal database sen^e - teywcrds
are tags chat you enter in the m^argins ot a data page^ solely for
the purposes of FINDing that pag€^ later. They ar<> not notrmally
viable when vjewing flie pege^ aind editing them is an awkward
process.
EDITING AND REFERENCE
As wbU as bypa:»img the tiee slructiirep you can prune it and
move the branch^ ^ound using the disconnect/ reconnect
command '$'. To do this, of course, you need a fair grasp of the
current sh^pe of ihe iree - and that's nont? too easy. There is no
indication of how deep you are in the tzee, and no way 1 coMd
find of gi^ttin^ any sort of overview.
The catalogue is accessed and edited nstng single- or mo-
letter commands rather than conlToI oddes. There is a Lisl of
appropriate commands maintained on screen, but it is not
e^Mustnre. Tke reasoning behind whether a comm^and is
displayed or not is uftdear: why list KEY^ which edits a page's
keywords, but not DIC, whicih displays them?
The system is slanted stroTLgly towards relerendng youx
data xai^ter than manipulating iL Editing can be tricky , and
having to tag data pages with keywords is laboiioTLs to say th@
le^t. Even woise^ there's no word-wrap on data page entries,
which can make your text difficult to read.
It's not that referencing is imicii easier, what with Qiree-
digit page minibers to rememberr but there are good facilities
tor lefexenoe-onty use. Once ftie database has b^en set-up,
incipcocnccd users can rrf^er to ftte tatalogne in read-oj^y
mcKle without risk to the data.
DOCUMENTATION
Though the manual is cife^rly written and avoids unnecessary
technicahlies, it lacks a proper reference section. U you want to
know exactly what a coiiim.aitd does or the kind of inpute it's
going lo e:^p«ct, you'U have to rumnoage through the varlotis
tutorial sections - and there*s no index to help you. For £70, yon
might expect something n bit better.
G Q D
NEWS
^ E^sy 10 access data,
ft" Tree sixmctiure makes for
logical storage,
P- Read-only mode protects
data &vm me?Ipe^ie£tc£^d
usein.
BAD NEWS
!^ Very inflexible.
► Awkward to enter and
edit data.
*■ a lo! of money tor what
you get.
► Manual needs a proper
reference section.
^ Tou. can only have one
eauiogue p«r dl«k.
VERWa
The package is not very flexible, and yonU need to be very
snr^ it cdn handle the tasks youVe got in mtnd before you buy.
It's not really suited to inventory maintenance^ and lacks the
search tadJities needed for general data handling. If tree-
structuring appe^I^ to you, bear in mind that Caxicm's Br^in-
sform can do the same job« is much more flexible, and costs i2D
leas.D
3
n
99
m
m
o
S
*«
%
3
m
o
M
ttm*'»^mmv,ft*t^)^ AMSTRAB ACTION JULY 1986 31
PCW BOOKS
The 8256 and 8512 qt^ inifire&sive mcichmes, but they
are bfldly let dowri by their documentation. To be fqir^
Locoscript qncT CP/M Plui are pretty tough subject* to
deol with - but Ihor* all the more reason why you
need a good manual to eiKpEatn them.
Problems like this ore nothing new iit computing^
and there are plenty of pi^blishers willing to $tep into
the breach. The two books reviewed here ar^ the firsi
to d^al with Ihe 8512 os well as the older 8256. The
differences between the two machines ore particularly
importdnl ot beginners' level, so the books could meet
a reol need - but how do they shape up?
^mm^WwtMsmmmiM^amk the
JiitfcBtrad WCW 82S6 mtiil
B«l»uiPiiMli
Tbm lA ttie cheaper of the two bodk&^ and Frn noi jimt lalking
aboul the price. The ptapcr is thm, low qisahlT atuff and nol
ezac^Jy brilUaiit ^hite. What'£ more, all the book's typQsettmg
was dorte on a PCWB256 and asstnaied primer^ so Jt Mis a lofig
way fihorl o[ nomtaJ paperback slafidards.
bi a way, ihough^ the paper and typesetting both woik lo
flwi book's adv^mrag^. Being pcrfoct- T^iheT than spijal-bound^
you mighi e:ipc7t problems typiiig and kq^ping the bciok open
at the same tune. En practice the Qim?r paper, coupled with the
book's l^^c? fgrrnatf iiiiike this cssj on all but the &ist and l^st
lew pages.
Afl for the? ifpesettitLg, thii too is useML It not onlr actt as a
good demonstrarion of the system's capabilities, but also allows
Ihe author to deiuDnMrate t^it slyles, foxrnxats etc, in the toart
TECHNICALITIES
brF^. Wilson
The book's le^ dit&cnlties lie no4 so much witti i^ form a3 with
its content. For one thing; the atilhor makes the mistake of
getting too tedtmical loo eaily. After two pages of intxoduction
he Lann-qh^s into a desciiptiOin of binary niimbeTs, byfea and
ffkachine language .
This really ts not the son of thing most Gxst-time i£ie:^ want
to know about right at the start of a "Practical Reference Guide',
h's Ihe sort of thing thai puts a lot of people oS pTogtammiiig
gnidea, so what it's doing m an applic:ations book Tm not quite
sui^. To be fair, a litlSe technical knowledge can be very helpfiil
- bat not tiiis. and not here.
LOCOSCRIPT AND CP/M
It's hardly fair to judge a book Uke fhis by its fiisl few pages
akme* and anybody making it past tber^ will oextaimly ficKl the
going gets a iot easier.
The book takes you through Loooocxipl and CPfM front
direct piint mode and limple disk qp^rations. to th? mtiicTaa^s
of templates and imils, "Hie author goes iitlo a fair amouni of
de^il in all fhis^ but mefcihilly steeis cleai of furthei
technicalities.
Where the test outlines a procedtue for^ say^ setting up a
template, you're given a sort of Qow-chail ahowmg whai you
have to do, and whai rcspon&es you'll got on your screen.
Tliese c^ui get a bit cluttered ai times, but are for th€» mp^ part
very helpful.
My main complaint i3 with the long-wmded writing style
which gets in the way of the explanatiqiu Tim is a mattei of
taste, of course, bui i did fiiul it ivtade the book quite haid to
read.
4^ D a D NEWS
J^ Cowvrr Locosoipt i&
givat detait
^ Belpfol dtaycanw
■bewiog jtm w^hat tn d«.
^ Type«el on am 8256, s«
whai you see i# what y$m
BAD NEWS
^ OfT-puttinf an it
unnecesiary technical
chapter,
►- Writing tiylft make* the
^40k heavy going,
^ Look! and feels cheap.
tbe JUttstafad PCW
8256/aS12: Wovd Proeesfiiagr
aB4i Pergonal Cotti|>iitiiig
'MHiiiiiiiH
The contiasl between this and the preTions book is marked- F<ir
from being long-winded, thA writing style here is brisk and \o
the point - and with good r^uon. Being conventionally lyp^iel
the bcH}k packs rather more text onio each page, and ha3 more
pages^ but it has a lot more ground to covcsr.
Although Locoscript is covered in condderable depths
Ltaccounts for le-ss than half the book. The remainder is given
OTer to a thoiough explanation of CP/M^ and a guided lour of
oommon apphoations programs.
L0C05CRIPT WK^^mi^^mmm^^^^^
There's quite a diflerenoe between this and P.A. Wilson's book«
Gwessx as £ar 9S LnKoscript coverage is c^onoemed. The emphasis
here is on the features of Locoscripl as a piogram, ralher than
3i 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1966 3^mi^^^Y^kfb^
The result of unique co-opercEtjon between three ace software developers
and the Biggies film productton companv. Biggies- The Untold Story wil
knock you right out of the air! If s a multi-port arcade strategy gome in
which each part must be completed to reach your final goal
In the air, on the rooftops, on the ground, or in the trenches
YOU CAN BE A HERO!
ComJng In May
Commodore 64
Spectrum 48 K
£9,95 tape, £12.95 disk
£9-95 tope
Coming In Juns
Amstrad CPC
£9.95 tape £14.95 disk
m^J^
Hal
Purneil Book Centre, Poulton, Bristol BS18 6LQ
YOUR AMSTRAD
NEEDS HREMLIN II
f
THE WAY OF THE TlGEM
Entv tin wdtU of AwRgv. a Hlnia wxrncr
D^ unparollcbd dd-ls and dc^dhp- pn*B^ k
r« iHtlSH tht rojvw or-€Vll in (I^Tpks e^f tife
rutn Bfrf pntKdoi Bf thP w«t.
■ariHTBthir. aid unriviillEid can^Ht ri?ulEi^
b*i ynu tn- lc¥Eb of «c±bn fcj d mio- have
Otwgfit pnitHlr
Expalm^ ths Etunntag iri^iani e^ irl^
KriNLirig Ktten jf^ou Tnu£«r 1 h* tKlwi^L^s
En-prpDfTiing aA\ Uy fddi-. K*^ rwx; 1;^ W|f
The cvii p^bJis a wnnhiriq iB^-tic aa e3
irrtBi^Mcz ng mnHd. czsiijig sptfc uid
I^CTcrv 4wp b tht &9vmtt of tlii larlfl. Itow
■ dDit?ThrtV«1^MMawlflH ■ ~
Gremlin Craptiics softvware Limited, Aipha House, 10 Carver street, Sheff lew S1 4FS, Tel: 0742-753425 <> *—
on the appearance and layout of the finished printout.
The approiicli you prefer Is very much up to you. I found
this book much clearer on what you hivn to do to make the most
of Locoscupt. It's iTue that thiSr&'a very liHle m the way of
sample printouts, so you cnJghE not be too smre at fixat quit€
what, for exartiple, bold itahc half-h&ight is going to look like.
Bui I donH TeaUy think this is a ^serious problem - afttir all, if you
want to know What something's going to look like the eimplest
Ihing io do is prini tt out and see.
The other poini to bear in mind ifi that this book doesms't
have flow-charts to guide you through pro<sdures. Again it's a
matter of taste H but ! round John Hughes's <;Ieaxei writing style
moT^ than made up for ihia.
USING CP/M
Although the Locoscripi section does deal with simple disk use.
a thorough treatment of CP/M has lo wait until almost halfway
through the book, hi three well thought-out and clearly written
chapttsr^ the author covers the mam utilities, injsfcill^tion pro-
blems, and .SUB m^&
Just as with Locoscriptp pretty much all the informaiion here
is to be found In the tirsi 8296/80 12 manual, but this book draws
it together in a usable fonn, In patticular the chapter on SUB
files mak^s tho t^seful process of pioducmg turnkey disks
simple and stxaightfoTward. Even if you don't know what a
turnkey di^k is at the moment, this book will m^e everything
crystal clear.
APPLICATIONS r^W^i^' '^
Lastly the author considvirs ihf^ HlrernrtUvea to word processmg,
neimely databases and spreadsheets; and one alternative to
Locoacript as a word processor i New Word- Alter a brief
explanation of what for example a database docs, the coverage
confines itself to one mainstream package with s brief glance <it
less orthodox alternatives.
1 am. 1 mu$| <idmii, rather sceptical a^ to the value of this
section, ft you don'i know what <* database is then the relevant
chapter will certauiJjf tell you - but Vm sure there's no need or
UM tor this much detail. Tha( said, the spreadsheet chapter
earns it? place by pointing out the non-financial possibilities of
the things.
GOOD NEWS
> Sliraightforward and
clearly writtin*
P- Good, practicBit
Locoacript and CP/M
iutQriols.
^ [nteresting matexiai un
various applications.
BAD
MEWS
^ CoBtA a bit more.
P- LocoBcript chnpters wre
short on sample printouls.
^ No flew-ciliairts to belp
fOU.
...And now we turn to the CPC machines, with a book for program hackers
Poweifal ProgvaiTinting for
Amstradff - Superckarge youi'
464/e64/ei28
WJoluiHIl
Sigma press, price tSStS
Long titles seem to be the flsivour of the month in the world of
computer books. So, it seems, arc serious computing subjects.
This book is aimed chieCy at those Arnold owneis who
w^t to write practical, problem-solving programs with a
mathematical or similar slant to them. It takes the form of a
collection of subroutines, with notes on the underlying method
and the progranuttiibg techniques involved.
THE ROUTINES
The routines a^e a very mijfed bag indeed, varying from the
very usefui (o the oompiet€?Iy pointloss. While many of them do
tiresome or dMcult tasks neatly ^ a lot of space is given ovor to
tiivialfiies.
On the useful side of thing? there are routines for matrix
manipulation and high-precision arlthm^e^c, a variety of sorting
roiitinQs, and ^ bandy regTessi<m program. WMle aU fairly
specialised, theses could save you quile a bit of eftoit.
In contrast, a Tiimi±>er of routines ar^^ of very Uitl^ ua^ at all.
There are roudnes to rotmd numbers in different ways, or to
convert betv^een binary, decimal and h^x - despite tlie tact that
Looomotive BASIC provides specific keywords lo do these jobs
Other pomtless routines include one which finda factomls.
Awhole page is given pvor to this seven-liner - and 1 really
can't unagine anybody using it rather than writing their own.
The problem with liook$ of stibroutines comes^ when you
try to u$e the routines themselves. If it takes you as long to type
them in and tailor them to your precise ne^ds as it would have
lo write your Own, you have wasted your monfty on the book.
While Ot€?ge routities are for the most part fairly self-
explanatory; they are very short on comment and ihe notes
aren't aJway^ top helphal either.
It's not ej^aciiy an advantage thai most of the routinos axe
straightforivard, either. If you loQk at a routine and il's Ittunedi-
ately obvious to you how the thing works^ you oould probably
have written one yourself without much liouble* If you write a
lot of mathematical programs, you're lazy and you like typing
Uimgs in, this book could be what you're looking for - but that
rules out moist people, I should UunkO
GOOD
NEWS
BAD
NEWS
^ Some genuinely useful
loutines.
P- Duplicates actions of
BASIC keywoirdv in plaices.
^ if you wont the routines,
ycu could probably ivrite
them yaim«]f.
►■ Very littte canniniient In
the listings.
BOOKS
AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 41
FOR YOUR AMSTRAD 464-664-6128
£7.95 £1t45
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Ha&^llanJ'cK:.
NAME
ADDHESa
PRINTE R PAC I AaCB<P70R
42 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
THE ALL-ACTION
REVIEWING SYSTEM
Action test has a sltghtly different air this months a sort
of dartki musty dungeon ^melJ. You donH need to look
far for the couse because the Pilgrim has found his
way out of his regular monstef-fill^d hai/nts to brirtg
you the Mastargome review. Thot's rights our first
adventure Mastergame is H^avy on the Magkk whkh
combines text od venturing with superb onimation to
bring you an animated adventure that made Pilg^s
eyes Mght up under h\% cowl.
Horvey Headbang^r is o budget game thai nearly
pipped PMg for the Mo^tergome,, having some tremen-
dously cute, colourful and additlive action. Disc
owners will be delighted with Tau Cetfr The Speciat
Edifion^ orcade freaks will flip over Bombfack and
arcode adventurers have Shogvn to drool over. In fact
there* s something for everyone. So whot ore you
warting for.. .get reoding.
1. EltPERT GAM£1^LAY< No game geie written up ui^tii it's had
3 long and thorough i^3L Take software editor Bob Wade.
D^E^pite his tender ye^rs and eensitivie soul, ttes pretty deadly
wife a joystick and happer^sf to have played virtually every
Arn^irad gam^ <&ver released. As diey B^y down in these paT^s,
BW t^ache^ the parts oihei re^ewers can's ^ouch,
2. EXTRA OPINIONS, It's always daiigerous tQ tely on just one
reviewer - tastes vary enormously. So all the gaines we j^vitw
aie looked at by at least two peopie - &oJ& Wade and Aj^drew
Wilton - who quite often disagree with each other, and when
they do, they say so!
3. hKSSULEIt SCREEW SHOTS- it a obviously important to
print scroen^hots, bat often they can be hard ca make sense of
Labelling the dififejeRt elements can make all the difference,
4. CLE AE SUIWMABIES. Ever read a review where you ended
up cimiused about the vtirdict? No chance oi thai happening
here. To make our own vie^^'s crystal clear we include a concise
siuniTiary under the Good New^/Bad News headings.
5. RJtTtrtGS BOXES. Wfe rate our games ijLSirig percentages for
extra flexibility and p^ecJJion. Artd with so many gam^3 to work
through, it'$ a help to see at a glance which are good and which
aren^t. Our ratiitgsE bcices do this - just look oat for the games
with loixg bai^ and dark lips.
i- GREEN SCREEN VIEW. Some people have to make do with
a graen acreen monitor for their garner. Our Green Screen
View lets them know if they le worth the effort of loading.
AA Ratings - how they work
ORJLPK1C5. What the game
looks like: colour, definition,
animation, jjtiagiftatioii, amootti-
n^sjj. Only part of a gajn^'s
graphic gwality is apparent from
the printed screefi-shoia ~ obvi-
ously th^e cart'i fijtgw thing like
stiooihnesg of tnovement,
SOIflCS. Game soujtd. To get a
high rating a program will pro-
bably n^ed a wide variety of
mreLI-choaen sound effects and a
pleasmg mit^cal soimd- track.
Eflecta which are annoyiTig or
eJd hat may serioij^y affect mi^
r A Ting's health .
GRILS FACTOR. Does ih€i
game really GKAB you? Are you
hooked? How ADDtCTrVE i^ it?
0«b Factor refers t^ !h^ it^wtJta-
iTf of il'ie desire for 'one more
go' . Apd although it'^ pot a m^a-
nie C3f ^matant appear Grab
Fa^tDT won"! be rated highly on
programs that are BtTSEMElY
difficult to g^t into. The ba^ie
te^t is this: aft^r you've Jo^ded
up a new game, read the in-
structions ind played ^t far half
an hour, doe^ iE th<^. iiresi^ibly
draw you back for niore?
ST&tTNO POW£n A game
nruay be i3:stomeMr-.g.^y addimvfl
fojE a white (aiid ^erefbr^ have
a high Gtab Factor) and yet lack
depth and therefore lose inter-
est faaxty quickly. SEaymg Power
[elta yoif How LONG imerest in
the game i$ likely to last. This
depends on such mAMrs as Ore
n amber of screens and tevek,
tho ^wariety of the laak. the de-
gree of long-term challenge, in
short the game's PEPTH. An
addiciiv^t game with only a
CQJjpl^ of &creen« wiU g*t A high
GraGb Factor and Jow Staymg
Power. Ons with a lODO^screen
MASTERGAME
Heavy <^ti the Meiglck
AA RAVES
Harvey Heailbaiigeir
Shog^iiti
Sta^qn^aSce
Bomb jack
£t[uiEi09C
Tau C«ti£ Th9 Spi&cial
EditiOii
They Sold a Kiltioiti tl
GAMES TESTED
Killapede
Nodes of Y^iiEOd
R ad -Zone
Monopoly
Trollie Wallie
Ciinf right
Basil do 11 Bond
Dam bii s t er s
Mocrl«ar HellStt
Voodoo Ragfe
Rock*n Wrestle
Toadrunner
Spiky Has-old
Classic Invaderm
Disc 50
Gargoyle
54
FTrebifd
4i
Virgin
46
Bubble Bus
47
EElte
62
Mihro-G«n
62
CRL
64
Hit Sqwd
Ployers
Firebird
Mosteflronk
Leiiyre Genfus
P(oyer£
Ulffmate
Pfobe
US Gold
Ployers
Antqrtic
Melbourne House
Ariolosoft
Firebird
iubbJe Bijs
Coscode
48
50
50
51
52
56
S8
S8
59
66
65
60
BE
pUymg ^34 A^d which takes a
tot of ^€irtin9 into would be ?he
other way ro^nd,JtJl RATINO.
Thijff 13 OUT overall veidici on
the gajtie^ the resuJi of a very
hard Jiim, involving aU the other
latirtga, pint factors lik« phce^
originaJjry. quaJiiy oJ pdckaging
snd siutriictisnt and aiifthing
else we can (hink of. It's norm-
aMy pretty close to the Grab
Factoj and Staying Pow^r r^l-
ing$. bt^iuae th^^ are how
most people judge the worth of
a gartw;. Cutting an AA Rattng
above fiO^ a eama a game ih^
jnu^ Doiight After label of Aft
Conrtpatibilify
All the games reviewed Ihjs
month are compatible acro^
the whole CPC range.
JtAVl, while the highect rated
gani# m dny monlh becomes
our MASTEFCAME - we go
though agomeii befoie wl^&a-
HARVEY HEADBANGER
Firibud. £1 .99 cass. iovsticl^ &r keys
What's 50 great about a aingLe scieeii
budget game which you can leam to play m
10 seconds? Gameplay - that's w:hat- De-
!>pite its siinplicity this game has mind-
warping, addictive gameplay that make it
an saaeittial buy, and difflcull to s!op
pLaylciig once you've got it.
The key to the gameplay is originality.
Yoii won't have encountered a ganue quite
like this belore on a computet, even though
it is mjLQh a simple concept. The q^mx^ lakes
pl^ce en an 6i:E3 grid of squares where
Harvey Headbanger and his xival Hamlsh
Highball try to outwit each other in a lest of
skill and fast reactions.
The roles of Harvey and Hamish can be
taken by either two players, one player
against the computer, or the computer can
control both in a demo game. The oike
playei game is tough, but obviously a lot
more fun can be had when two players
battle against ^ach other. H and H are
spherical, buck toothed, wild haired, bug
eyed lunatics who have a noveJ way at
getting azound the screen.
SECOND OPINION
Cc3fe gTMphics mid murderous
gameplay will hook yon and keep you
hooked. If you like arcade action And
hcard-g^iine stiBtegy then l^t^n your
seatbel^, 'cos this h^s got botii - al th&
same ftme.' TTie ccmptttcr's HamiBh
gets vicious c^ the higher levels iud a
hximsn Opponent is ev^n worse, so
you "M ha ve to think f^sf and m ove
faster. Great v^ue At five times the
pn'cef
[t ian t that aim^ple though because
either player can gain an advantage over
the other by creating and drinking cock-
tails. Vup, you read that right - cocktails.
The names of the fat fighters may have
0ven it away and there are yet more aiiiy
drinks involved. These are the Slim Jim,
Hong Kong Fizz, Crjrstal Highball and the
Tequila Sunrise, all of which h^ve a desir-
able efie<;rt on the H that manages to driiik
them.
Cocktails are created by encircling a
coloured area of your opponents squares
with youi own. They can then be passed
over ajid drunk, increasing the liquid level
in a straw at the side of the screen. This
becomes important when the two fatties
coUide on the san\e square. They turn black
and spirt off oompletely out of controL^ but
the one with the higher liquid level will
regain control Srst and can ny to encircle
his helpless cipponent as he reels around
the screen.
When a player is trapped he disap-
pears m a splodge of colour leavmg a pair
of boggling eyes. Enemy cocktails can also
be removed by encircling them, causing
them to disappear with a coXoujfui Zap.
They eJso disappe^ if left undrunk for too
long. Victory is greeted by the winning
player swinging full drcles on a line.
The aiumation and use of colour give
the game a cartoon feeL and ilie musical
ditfy that imlcles along during play sounds
nice. The gameplay is the chndher ihough
with the five computer sidli levels provid-
ing stiff opposition to start with, and a
hliman opponent giving more unpredicta-
bility and excitement to keep the action
going. One of the most addictive and un-
pre^sive budget titles Fve seen, particular-
ly whetL you play with two players,
mm
The grid is split horizontally by lines
from which the piotagonistsi can swing from
side to side, or jump up or down to change
lin^S- This brings a great look to the action
because they are wonderfully animated
and totally manic. They can swing freely
about the grid, making right angled turns
when changing direction.
The two H's eacii control a different
colour, changing a grid square to that
colour when they pass through it. The idea
isn't to turn the whole grid to your coloui,
but to try to encircle your opponent with
squares of your colour so that ttie space
within, including your opponent, gets filled
m. Thi& wms a game and a set number of
gamefi, specified at the starts wiU win the
contest as a whole.
The evil Hamish
Ju&l ^-3 nii-\^ cl&ar v^tiat Hsrvey s ud ags-n^t.
here it is in diagram tii'i-. l)J^gr^.-n - Ehd.va
Hafvey n ^f^TpuF> trpiibl=^. -HtsmisJi ftas andrde^l
hsrrt willh a fQT/i of b'u^ t.QLa'-es aiicf i& ^3oyl to
Diagrar;! ^ shoivs hew nasty Hamish
□1 ted nas besfl e^drded. Ofie i^ore move aPrd
^\\l [£a) three lovely cocktafe.
44 AMSTEIAD ACTION JULY 1986 An^fhi^fl -^ h»PP*n -
bm»>uixihaifha»iAMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 45
SHOCVN
\luqi». i^.^b t,is:i, tl4.g*j disc, jQVSUck pHJy
The kings of ilinslxad arcade adve^timng
liAYS COTW& up with their l^te^ graphic
claaalc, basad on the James Clfiv^ xiovel
about nth cetihiry Japan. Ws radically dif-
feient again from Sorcery and S^^ngeloopr
fe^tuitng i«>n£ and totally differem game-
playj bnt still displaying th^ir talent for
producing beautiful grapiiics.
The aim of the game Ls lo become the
Shogim, the supreme military leader and
number twia to the Emperor himself. To do
thai you hare to get twenty followera to
support you and (hen complete a quest
given to you by the Emperoi. You can take
on the Tolm of many di^^rent dianact^FS
from the oufalder Captain E^dkthome
thjgngh pea^smtg, serir^ritg: and e^tmurai to
flue noblea. The difflcuJty of becoming
Shogun is diiferent for each character but it
isn't easy for any of them and the efibrt
required for each is reflected in the final
score.
The game tai&^ p]a.o^ againat some
very picturesque backgrounds consimiiiig
of hillsides^ cloudsp rivers, buildings,
palaces, c&ves. lavm pilff and general green
scenery. These stteena sometimes appear
to be in peeudo 3D and at other timee 2D
but all of them look nice and it doesn't a£:ect
the playing of th^ game.
The chBra^lor under youi conuol ^an
«ik
move apywhere on the screen, except
where he is blocked by a specific object or
terrain feature. These haire to be dis-
covered by experience. This means (hat
SECOND OFINIOli
Thi^ one reaJ/ygiahf you mth its
graphic oiigin^'ty and sizs, but ihm
gumepl^yh^^ few problems. The
tasks leqmred of jojj are usuaUy
pretty striughtibiwErd, thecombAtin
pAi^ciilAT h&ing A m^ttsr of
uninteUig&ntM^^mg. The sk^reens are
wQnderfuHy ^tmosphenc, tut the
^sence ofcIesT exits can g^t Tery
IrustratiRg. An mtn'guin^ game, htit
not vintage Gang of Five stjMas ^j as
rm concemed-
AW
you have the odd sight of the characters
wandering around in mid-adr but you'll
to that and realise it's nece-
soon get used
Th& fcoii jiwnu thai
off&ws y-fiy fa
m
^
^^^
i^
'//
'd^
IT--
E5-
Iv
ri!SiJ^
f
^WU
^^•i^rf*
r
m
f s
l_ " T-
ufi?
^5-"^
<^
The nme Icww In the goine oil
need to be used to gvt the best
out of it so her e'^ what they do-
ve fy handy Ihis
become oppon#nN will oHen :
yield end follow you. Stubborn ;
oppoFiet^t! moy hove to be ktlled I
(you diop fhe4r heod off] w they i
may kitt you. Hghting nofyrolly |
to%H you o lol of energy.
you can go round fir- !
ing smiles ot people to fry to win j
theiti over which also ^xAi^ anergy j
bifl IS %&& likely to bring thefzi |
ssary and indeed desirsibJe feecanse of ttie
perspectiv^a s^tcMng.
Moveraent around acreen is raftier
jerky and inacairate bat fortunately this
tffit't too important from ^ gameplsy point of
view. What is more annoying is die dif-
ficulty and delay in moving off the edge of
one screen and onto ainother. Once yoy
knovg^ how the game maps out this is less of
a problem but you'll need perseverance to
start with in discovering where you can go.
Once yon cwi get around ^e game yon
can siart interacting with the other charac-
ters and try to complete your task using O^e
nine icon commands at your disposaL The
most important of fhese are the ones allovr-
lag yon to attack, befriend^ examiiie and
order other characters , and give ihem ob-
ject. Using these you can win over people
but there are bound to be a
. to yoi;LX cause
TH* money Y&uVe ?vvw ^a^w^
riyttb*r of loyal
folldwAri
unrieiTiffo**!
*•-*
niii^
iifir
A □#oiant who
con h<* eoslEy
iwfiiyAd to your
CKJse
:-%*vr
tew casualtieg
along the way - just make
auxe one of them isn't you.
The diaracters all have different de-
af res, behaviour, strengths and vreaknesses
which change fo^ each new game but you'll
need a rough Imowledge of each pe^on's
oharacteristics il you're to survive for long,
Survival is dapandent on keeping (he
atreitgOi gauge replenished. Ir's run down
by tome actions and buUt up by eating food
tttat appears at variotis placed. The other
iity tiial {?an be coUected atlrequent
/"JVMm
roynd to yoyr woy of thfnklng.
thi& can b» used to Hf^d
oyf what something or «^m«^Nl# J*
and how d character moy be
feeling.
o la^ retorr this in a
figtit because you will probably
lose your foltower? oikJ pot-
ttnslons. Definitely the di^hoFimir-
obta^ ihin^g to do,
yoij ctin bribe citfMr <har-
ocfers wilt! mofrey of objecH *©
make them more omefioble to
yoo,
dropt Oft ^ ttw thrae limm^
you eon corry.
bririgs wefcofne rest for □
hord wofklDg laimifoi frorr the
rlgoi^n of acHonp
vftry ImpDrtonr thi^
becoute it oHows yov ro order
you foFlowers to ge^ on object,
stored gtjord^ protect you or as-
tDttlnole fomeone. See what o
privilege Ef h to hove pow^r In
oncieni JpponI
qllow^ you to sove
o gome ot of^y po In^.
inte^T^l^ is gqld and a largq bank baiajic^
will ailOVF you to indulge in Boine under*
hand biiberyi
Wtben yOaVfl gol 2D faQowezs and
iniiTdd th« Emperor's pala<^ you enter the
second pfaaae ol tho gaitte wltic^ mvoivc^
Ending £o«r difletent objects. Kow jou get
ih&m and what iJiey are you'll Jiaire t^ work
out Geir yomrself .
tn terms ot the giApiucSp atmosphex«
&iid gfyne fa$k Virgin have another excdlt-
Qnl gmma on their h^nda. The only thing that
lets it down a little is the conlirol of the
chaiacler which will csi^e some an-
aoy^mcep Tti^ i^zons are used 10 good eflect
and not thiown in jiust fox th« eeiJke qI it. Most
importainily of all th^ gameplay is good^
l>eing easy to get slatted on biat in the long
mn lou^h to Mat
BW
6IIEEH SCREEir VIEW
Loff&e a greidl da^ of ^ tm o^pJiete, and
ihMfM a S0iiousblow to the game bb a
whtit0. NQimjor problems with
vMbilsty^ but colour doeahsJp you
recognise characters.
AW
Good Auinbef of ?ery attrftctiire
ftcifeeiis.
Ificft Acanajio and atmoBphera.
Oeod ti«e of i oonri lit gameplay.
bsy to get I0 f rips with but touf li to
LotA of difr«renc chArftderfc to pLftf
uad therefoxe variatiODB in the gajn««
Oharaotef control leaves sortxetMitg to
be desired.
Some pUyers m&y find the gamepleiY
Lackfl dppthp
GRAPHICS
SONICS
GRAB FACTO n
STAVING POWEn
A A HATING
|8«%
|3a%
8i%
mm
iJob stor4M wrde
eyed o* his roth^r
dull KIETQCJPdirigf:
Tv^apoi'l itimlFiol
for fosi mciveni«fit
between preoi
Bubble lii$ are quite a small software house
in comparison with the OceanSp ActiTlsioi^
and Firebirds ol this world but they keep
pfOdudiig good little games Wizard's LAir
Mid Hi Rise were both good value foi
money products and this latost arcade ex-
plq ration gain^ lookM set to do even better
(oj th^m.
The flta^ is BLOB CSio-Ijoglcally
Opeirated Being} who has lo r^uild the
core of a pl^ui^t to save th© univ^riQ - ho.
hum, it's aU in a day's wotk. Tranaiated
front the inlay ttkat means he has to coUecl
ihe nine pieces of core bom amangut Ehe
itiaise df Sl^ game rooms. Naturally this task
is lai fiorti ea^y because ot the size of the
game and the ob&tactes that face Blob .
SECOND OFIMOW
A big Onff ioT ^sphT^UQii fr^^itas, ^nd
ihe gmnt^pli^y s p ref/y strong few,
llti^re are plenty 0f mierssfing
f&amres fc&xpenment with, ajid#ante
roij^h ob^mdeij 10 getpHst It'if nothing
very exciting to look ^at, but n tig tHSk
and lots of nice toitches ntote thAMi
w np for this.
ing look to this fame is a xosult of ft beifig a
coiii^siTKioti^ but fonunaiely the gameplay is
a difler#nt matter.
Blob is jus^ thatp a small circular cree-
GRAPHICS R
50NCSR
anW FACTOR R
STAVING POWER
A A HAT f*G m
'«/-
2% >:■^^:■S
■■ . ■■ I." ,.%-vv^^!^P^X7DQQKM
The rooms are Eairly simply designed
to look liko a cave sy^t^m but th^ l&ck of
variety in the colour dotracts a good doa],
Many of the features and aliens are drawn
in dataH to look goodp but agjiin oolour is
iiot used to the fiill. This slightly disappoint^
!u« with bug eyes who has two main
methods of movement - walking and flying.
Walking is done unaided but leaves; Biob
aU^cfed by gravity, ao that he will drop like
a Eione when ho walks ofl th& edge of a
platfoimn He can be guided left and tighi in
ti).ft ftii: but a much easiec torm of irave>l is
using hoppers. Th^ can be picked up at
many points and flown freely around but
rvt^ct Blob'ji id>ility 10 pidt up some ob-
lects and get tnio sOm-e giime $^c:iioiiJE.
They si! underneath him Like a hover pL^t-
form and can be dropped ofif al another
hopper point when Blob nQ«dB to go on fOOt
again.
Another very handy means of irarw-
po^iatioh lA th€j t&leport terminals that can
be i4sed to gel to a dllforeni n^t^a of the
game. Each one has a five letter nsme
which you njeed to know in ordet to use it
but once dlsoovared th4y don't chrnige In
sabsequent games. 10 traveLbeoomes con-
siderably iasien. tn ^ome plnc!^ Ih^ri^ ai^
49
UCASFIUM GAMES
. H
Discover the set rets of
The FJdohit^ a
mysterious I9tli
century macliiiic
powered by the forces
of magic. The Eidolon
lets you teleport and
transform enchanted
creatures - (freps^^\
Biter Birds"" and
Botttenecks'^.umi
challenge the
"intelligent" Guardian
Dr^fions. You can
create and capture
magic tIrebalLs...
perhaps even alter the
flow of time itself!
*... outstanding
graphics and
ganicplay' Z/ap? 64
■l' ■, ■ifSmtSt' \
\ V-^
n^^ ^ ''''
I** ^ CL ^ i[^m
f #V ■
iwn^f^ti^
ITX
-^
:— ^ */
Scientific Curiositv or
Passport to a Magical
Dimension?
H
/
¥'"'
■y' ■
r^A
^i«miR
^^^
^nt.jiMSrwiiJcm
ACTIVISION
HOME COMPUTER SOFTWARE
"K.
.r
^##
t
It. JiMSrWllJ CWt.ftWiSFTTF IC& 9^ iU^Ir D<£K .-l 14 «i ATAI1^ EiX- ^E W. DISK |V ^J f;^: AmC f:0Mt10Q0=lE C4 CASSCJTE ^9- 99* A*G D15s^ im ^l
Jid.'-.iaii>f« KMmw-Cc
iQIJ9i5Ln
anti--gTsv lifts tluil cftn osUy be used when, on
foot, hMl sre e$s«ntiat in soirue sQcdons
wMie a hopper can'l be taken.
Th« aJieris that inhaJbit tlie c^ve come m
sevtsial diffejCiiis bie^da but there are only
two important distLtictiot^ io l>g made be-
tween thx^m. Most of thenv Dy ajround the
scjpeen draining Blob's energy when they
touch hiin, bui one pariiculaily nasty type
explodes on conmcL losing him a life- Liv-e^
can also go down the swaimee by miming
out of eneigy or colliding with several
deadly, static objccts-
Other nnmovmg objects can be nsed to
help our litde friend and they appear aU
over th& place m random. There axe foiir
basic types that roplrice energy. pJatform
blocks, bullets and Uvcs. There are also the
coz<t ^l^menis, keys and p^^e? that wiU be
needed to complete the game.
CREEA SCRCeif ¥l£ W
SbiTje o/die aliens axo di&cult to see,
so you cm\ be mkeit by mirpns^^
use o/co/otij' ispr^itypOi>r ^nyw^y.
JLW
The bSocks axid ballets aiso help Biob
out^ &e fOTmer bemg used when on fooi to
get him over obstacles and the latter lo
blast away most of the aliens. Blob can iui\
out of aJJ ^f these, particularly if you re-
explore an area of the game from wrhich
you've removed all Eha replacements.
The action is decidedly frantic with the
pressure always on from llie energy-
draining aliens, Alo^g with the need for
mapping and frndirsg objects thii m^kea the
gameplay demanding so thai youll be ab-
sorbed enough not to nolice the disappomt-
ing use of coJouf. NoK very Original but
f>acked mth action and ch^lenge foj? axty
stimdard of player.
BW
COOP H E Wf "F
^ 312 Screens.
1^ Nice movement controls for mralklngf
flying and Lii1%.
'p EfrcCLCfajnepiaywitli non-Slop action
to cope ^PFith.
^ Plenty of objects and fe^tuxea te
discover and use.
^ TouglL task bml easy to get tntik
B
M
W S
^ Not miicli oHgliiallty.
^ UniiTvagiiiAtive use of coZomt.
KILLAPEDE
Placers. CI .99 cass, joystfck nr keys
YoM wiy probably have guessed from the
gaine nam^ ihaE ^lu3 ^ a vera ton of Jke
arcade game Centipedi?, and not the first
one for the Amsirad either . There are a
number of digerences in style and conlent
Ciom the existing best, Wrig^J&r from
Blaby. but boih aire budgei prsced - rightly
so tDr on old arcade game.
The action takes place in a gartl^i
UJtder a^^ault by ^ myriad of difEexent
insects, aJl heU bent on the destniction of
yoiir Dynamic Debugging Thing (DDT -
get it? The insects wiU). This is locnted at
the bottom of the screen and can move
around the lower quarter af the diaplay. it
sltoots knives up the acreen thai deairoy all
manner of creepy-crawly, nasty-waaty,
buggie-wiiggies.
SECOND OPmiON
Big, hright and coloujful^ it's an above
average version of a intlyaddicti^&
gam^ - iintr/ yon ptay it, tf /oote ^eat,
it rounds ajira^ifig, but it's too slow.
There's none olthe insane paiur tisai's
SQ vifa/ to Centipede clones. Admire
its the spesch, but buy Wnggler for
^ramepiay.
AW
The screen starts off being dotted with
mushrooms that serve to get in the DDT '5
w^y^ and to accelerate the prpgx^Sf^ down
the screen cf the kOtapede that ^ppeans ciK
the top. Thi^ Is ihe. main object of your
attentions and ib composed of a number ol
segments which all have lo be destroyed.
Wlten e segn^ent is hit thp kiUapt^de aptite
in two. leaving a mushroom behind on the
Once the "pede has been destroyed
another ene appear^ 10 cake iu place, but it
is longer than before. Running mto a s^^g-
iv^nt caut^e? the DDT to explode like a
melcm hitting (he pavemsmt from tw
storeys up. This death routine i£ repeated
every rime the DDT meets any of the other
pesis
Th« ffWdjrm of ens^mie* include Heas
that drop down the screen leaving a trail of
muahroo^^t* behind them^ This wey the
screen can quickly hecorne c^^gt^ed and
reatiict both moven^ni and the ability to
^hooi things. MusliroOxnA csjei be fumed into
magic ones by snails that crawl acfoas
screen. When a 'pede hits otte of these tasty
toadstools it c^^mea straighl down ike
screen^ unlees intemipted by a quiche knif^
in &e head,
Down at ihe base of the screen the DDT
is harassed by spiders and ants. Spiders
bounce across screen, looldng moie like
MagrLiJis Pyk*^ with a spik?*d haijE-do, and the
ants move straight acroflS, trying to home in
on you. A much p^etDer adversary are the
butterfUe* thai flutter by Mcasi<i3ially and
can be blasted from the ekien for a h^iatthy
bonus score.
•co»e
L^7, hut not leAMi, is a ghdSt that ap-
pears when a piece <if 'pede reaches the
bottom of the Ecreen Se caii^l be nhox bni
disat^3^ajcs when all of the 'pede is d^&'
siroyed. If you take too long he wiM ad-
vance down Ui« scraen and yiauli be a
dead DDT.
The acHon is nowhere near as adre-
imtiH pumping as WnggJer becatsse i!*fl
much slower, buf it has a k^t goi^g tw favour
of ii. AiUiougli slow the ^ctiOn i» tciugh and
certainly has plenty oi colour. The present-
a^bon is also to b^ commended Wflh some
very impressive spee^ synthesis without
the need for hajdwaie^ and Some v^ry
colour^l wnting, A bit of a w^ of attri^on
boc^ui^ of lis AlO'/r speed but otherwise a
v^ry enjoyable and cheap blase.
ooooos
The ODT fdcts up
■o a nasi of
irrblnting 'nsecls
w
^ Good speech with oo extra liardware
^ Lots of different inieds lo cope wllli.
^ Good utte of cotonr.
^ Ceti tough «is yon are oy^xmn in later
stages.
GREEN SCREEN VIEW
WeU-cho$on colour comhmatioiis
tnean it's stilt ptayahie, ^t least for as
mMnysiag^ss ms ! could qef through.
AW
W S
^ Actiea is slow.
^ l>04Wii't get the «d3feii.4LllR pom^lsg as
mack as Wrifgl^r*
GRAPHICS
SONICS
GRAB FACTDft
STAVING POWEH
A A RATING
11%
wm
AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 43
NODES OF YESOD
Odin.ftrebjrd. £r9,9B Cdss, javi^I'ch or keys
Lunar itionoliQi^ aire nothiurg new to amyon^
who has lead or seen EOOI: A Sp^ce
Ody^ey but ihe problem here is findmg
one. To do this h little spajceman called
Charlie has to coUeoi eight 'alchiems' from
the Imwr cave system and oope with aU ^e
dmgeis there.
SECOND OPINION
The mole "s git^di ^r,d i ma JUcJrer tor
^xplor^ tion games, so why don 1 1 like
Nodes? Well, the iriith is it's just m bit
too mechaiiic3l Gr^phs'caliy wo^ ^ijtd
sadly Sacking m d^pth, tli& only thing^
io do is explore and coUecf - dnd" ihai's
n0F wjy imprt^BEive for a ilOg^me.
AW
Our bubble-headed hero begma has
quest on die moon's surface. There's a
dtaggy mountain range m the background
and in Ihe [oregiound are craters and holes
in ihe ground. Everythi:5ig is grey (very
reatjstic) and Trom itme to tune a moJe will
p<ip out oC one of ihe cratoTs. now revealed
as pioJcbJIls (not very realiBfic). II you jmnp
a! the mole, performing a graceful, vreighi-
1^^ Eomersauit In the process, he can be
caugh! and put to u$e kf6r on.
Walking over on-e of the holes in ihe
ground drops you mm Ihe undergtound
cave system where the dlchiema are
located . The cavcmB consist Qi telarively
bare flick screens (as opposed to scrolling
screens J, most of which contain a number of
pkcForms and lunar nasties. Charlie gets
aiound by jutt^ping berwrcon pKitfoims, but
has lo be carefuJ because very long drops
can end one of his three lives. Judging
seme ]um,ps can be quite difficult and yon
may end up inhuriated at having Juai faJed
to make a leap and aiipping of ihe edge of a
platform.
The oiher way Charlie cait die ts by
coming into contact with (he yjiderground
aliens. Th^se come in two b^&ic vaiicEicB!
ones thai float around the caves ^ind ex-
plade on contact with you, and onc^ that
waU£ around the bollom of caves and
RAD-ZONE
Mastertrimic, £1 .S9 tass, jDvstkk nt keys
Radiation dinstfirA ar^ becoming comino^-
pUtcte it se«mB, although forturmtely thia one
talc^ pUw^ on a remote plmetoid, Th^&i^e's
chilly one human )if^ %t rlfiik and yoi;t'v^ got
oi^if fu^s who - w*U fgtm«oA«'ff got to do
it. You've got to clear up thm mescrdecon-
tautnin$t£iig affficted ^leas by t^mof^fUvg ^
flm. radioactive objcctc.
- 1*he game comes tiom the authors Of
73^^ Scout St0p0 Oat and hus the niamA
dwtijTctjv^ grjiphio styln and gaineplay. It!a
an exploratton/ptfttlonn game packed with
plenty of small* colourful graphici and
isome nasty hft^^ds. You pontroi a Utile
balding maji who, aJtar having dotined an
ai^ti-radtatton suit, h^ lo ventmie qui into
thA hofftile irtadiated enyirommajitp
SECONJS Of^IKION
ft's quite siJi^Je smff, hut I enjoyed fir#
game a lot. The graphics ^re
imeTestuig and cohurfu], wiih
ahallenging g^^mephy And good
$ound tohoQt. Th^ S$f& arj&^ts wiUhelp
you e^sploie, and th^r^'s oerfamiy
pSenry io see. A ffood g^me and a
gi^eat price.
AW
The fl^aet^ ate ^ompoved of smaii
coloujfU], Mturisfic g^^ipilliiCff includinf'
sDme m<mng dangers And other fe^iutre*
thai you hav« to Sad out about by tiM «Qid
«ji^r. Oh ^ajch Kre<^ ara a nuinber of
object^ QM nfied lo be picikad up ii^ wdex
lo malce il a xadiadcm ire& area, fh^e
m^\ alwayi ihe sftime but ii^tdkid^ cl^nn
ahella, oeawe^, dmuond shap^ mcid
discs/ Same ^:^Eit only b« i^utraliwd whto
Pntf
^f^rri
I'^On
*t^fc
^v»
** :;
they fIfSh ri&dt making things even tbughH&r;
On^j^ aU radioacdve objects at* coHec-
t^ the scieefi becomes a sefe area. The^e
areas^ are extreineSy us^M ^t d^m^in^
your suit of radiation. A gauge at the
bottom <rf the scjMn shows tMs buildiitg up
d^£ to the pre&ence Of radioactive it^ivA
mxi colJMons with c<*Ttmn movtc^ ha[sard$.
tt ii gen too high y<ju firtc lo«e ihft pifoiec-
tlv« fair at^d tlten a life. Keruming to a ^afe
mr*a rismove* ail radiatiatt, btit il yoa ve
k^ a tuit then anothar om^ hu to be
ooSected frotn the ataxt sojb^ti.
The rtioviag obatadea on some screens
art well d^fiigned and lefhal H you get
caught by one at the wrong hme. Th^r* ax^
jolhng rodks, gu^ds w^th flpeaira, flying
saucers afid som« knivia« Oiat have a deitd^
^wlng action. One section ifi psxtijquj^^ly
tongh b0c3ti^ It's underwat^ and tWE a
bxtoy^n^ry effect the same aj in 7^ Spouf
^ep^ Owl
t^e screens require dUterenl akiili to
complete but good dmrng, fast re^ctKond
and a bit of luck will all biB needed. They
ax9 rrmpp^d out so thai they dcfiL^i have to
b« tackled in a pstxtijcuiaz order h^^
because of the need to ereate safe aje&s.
bouiii?e yoii into the air on contaci. Theie
both gradually diain your energy until only
a crumpled ipac€suit i£ left as «iVidencii cf
your exiaieitce. The- alienj are nicely desig-
ned Md animaltd but. like a lot of the oave
system, are dull in colour.
The mole that Choxlie picked up comes
in handy for performing two jobi. He can
explode some all^^ on contact but, most
important, he can dig holes in waJls. You
C9^ only find out which walls through trial
and eriqr but a ^e^imngly hopeless po-
sition or a particular aifanggmtn! Of plat-
forms may give clues. The holej the mole
digs give access to other ioctions of the
game, ^ssenti^l to completing it,
The alchiems are ahiny ^ryst^a Thai are
tough to find, and not safe even then. Other
space suited seaichcra will appear on
some scireeiiB and. i£ Ihey touch Qi^rlie.
will explode, takmg one of the alchiem^
wilh ihem. These and many other hazards
can be dealt willi using gravity stjc^,
which are collected along with an extra life.
Thoy remove some aliens and atop the
alcMem thieves in their tracks.
The game has some other nice touches,
like a tuimel wilh an updraft whjdh you can
float up and down, invisible holefi in the
floor, and whirlwinds that act like leleports.
These may help or hinder, but all make
tfl besi to w<>rk on a j-^gixltr pahertt.
The g^me is v^ry similar to TVie Scotit
St^ps Our but it's £7 cheaper and thai
makes it much better ^ralue. The screens
are attracdve, well designed and tsugh
enough to keep you expilormg fox «ofne
while. A dfehghtful title tufio pl^ys on the
fftaii #:?een wid; Iot SZ jqu c«b have n to* oi
fun with this.
iw
^ a n I w s
W- StnAll but otiil«nirfiiJ grApUon^
^ PleasaiLt tllle tiuie.
^ Nice ieatiEic* like w^tei sectlaiiuid
nfil«nas.
D
w
> Vgcrf Usiil^r t«i ia# S^sif Sfep9 Owl.
> MoTemenl c^iitrol, p«ticii£ajlf wkea
luider ullackp can be ^wkwa^d.
GBEEN SCREEN VIEW
TIte screei^ are fine, bu£ those coiour-
caded radioactive objects can i?e a
rea]pa2n. It is po^iSiJbie to teU wiien
they're? redr but onlYJusi.
AW
GRAPHICS
IONICS
GHflBFACTOW ti
SUYING POWEH
A A HATING
%;:
57*^
7%
11%
74%
m
mapping the game as you go a great help.
The graphics are the main disappoint-
meiit about the giune> They may be at-
mospheric and lunar-like bui they're al«o
very dull. The action itself lakes a liftle
while to get to grips wiih, bui once you've
started exploring properly there's q>iile a
bit to see and do. A nice exploratioii game
but not one that's going to eel youi mijid or
joystick alight.
BW
G Q a p n E w sT
> Large, atmospheric playing lue a.
^ Nicely Jinmiated alien s and ^urnpiag
aciion.
^ Good features like the mole aiid the
updraft tunnel.
^ Tough game taskp
I
E
W
P- Use of colour is very disappo Lntiiig.
1^ rust anex]ilor&tiougmmerei|uiriag
Utile thought.
P- Fatal falls can happen xnuch Ido easily
and there^a nothing you can doahou^ Lt*
GREEN SCREEN VIEW
Sfimw HLfT^PSjoraNerrtt W7cb gr^ajt
mo^MtieiM on a gr^en screen - jo Jr^ep
your «jwa p^sl&df
AW
MONOPOLY
Lei&*ire Cenius.'ViTgiii, f 9 9S cass. tlAAS disc,
keys only
Remember the lii^y aummor days when
you d gel out the bane red Monopoly box,
with its little green houses and red hotels
[real wD&dfen ones mind), and impend long
mfteinoons iiymg lo make a iortunc in
pretend money. You don't? Well here's
youj chance to experieince 14 on your
Arnold vrho will d<5 all the hard work,
leaving you to enjoy the giame and gei »
Ian.
This computer veision faithMIy recre-
ates the board game, and allows up to 3lk
players to lake part^ each with their own
playing piece. All your old favoiu'iles are
here: tiie if on, boat, dog, cax. boot and haL
For real aulhentictty ihere should have
been one missing and a large dont in the
boot, but no conversion is perfect after all.
Players can l&k^ control of all these pi^ceSt
or they can be lefe for the compuier to
conUoK h will even play all six in a demo
game.
SECOND OPINION
tm not reaily ioo sure whSii ihe point of
cojnputeris^ Monopoly is. Th0
cowpitt&r opponents are sit very w^H,
bui they're tto stibsitiuie for /liutian
hem^. In every other respect thm
r#ai^ cardhoAid thm^msi i»asi a£
good md a whole lot more fan.
AW
The screen has a pictUEe of the whole
board occupying Ihe top of the dispky, bul
this lacks detail and merely serves to show
the paeiaon of th^ pieces on the board.
Below is a window in which modt of the
miction takes plaos, inclnding close-up pic-
tures of sections oE ihe board.
If you haven't played the board game
then full instructions are included \vith the
gamei but here's a quick summary of what
it's all ctbout. Players travel ?i round a
square boajrd made up of a number of
colour coded asm of properly; and some
other special single squares, A site can be
bought, and when a player has a full set he
can build houses and hotels On the land, [f
another player lands on one of your sitea
you can charge him rent. This goes on with
players acquirinjg assets until a set time
limit or aJl btif one of Ihe pkyerE has been
bankiupted-
The computer rolls the dice automali-
cally for each player and moves the piece
along the board. The computer will offer
you one of several options depending on
which squaie you land on. Alter complet-
ing this the player can also select one of
several other actions, i-le can mortgage or
onmortgage properties, buy or sell houses,
try to trade propemo^ with another player
and claim rent when another player lauds
on y«^r property .
j^
51 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
All the spocnal f^^tur^? at& inolud^
like goiitg to JaiJ^ chanco ajid coramuniiy
ch^sl cards, tax spaces and Tree parking.
Because it's a gam^ of chance the compuler
plajrs a good game, but obvioiasly it'^ raore
fun 10 play against other people. The
graphics are fiairiy basic bul ad^^qiiate and
thero's litde sound. The game pioceeiis
fairly slowly thxough sdm<r aeciions and it
can beconic tiresomt;. A faithftiJ but unin-
spUing versioji of Che game th^l &niy lacks
tlie atmoaphere of little painied -wooden
houses wi^ knols In Oiertii dsntDd m^taJ
playing pieces and a booc and board woni
with use.
Q
W $
► raithJui comTeraion of the l^oajrd
game.
^ Up to SIX placers can play ajid there's
a good oomputeir oppoaent.
1^ The computer tak«E car« of the
calculations, xnovemeiit and other
Amamjatic fmictianB.
B
W
^ OFaptdcs ^ad fOTmd ajrea't wed as
fully as they could h%.
^ Tlie action i^ very slow in places.
^ II will never ha^e tlie siaine
at^no sphere and nostalgia of an ageing
board seL
LH'aHV-!— rf.'-in.-"*^-!. i.
OmXM SCREEN VIEW
hrtking's vjsi^Ie, ^ut the re*/-M*
board jis a Joi mare ^olauifiil.
AW
I GRAPHICS
GRABfACTOft
STftyiNG POWER
A A RATING
4gy<
18%
€3%
57%
*■<<:
t?::S
vIwK^
TROLLIEWALLIE
Players, £1.99 cass, jcystfck or k^s
Ton wonl fmd many games set in a saper-
markets and tertunatelf our ^ooai shopping
p^^ciiicf doesn'l have anywhere 33 deadly
as the aifilc^ that Walbe has to oope with.
Thiff supenriarkeT take* the form ot a krgo
iiciollmg pldfforin jtblize coniaining 40 items
that ne^ to t>© collected and paid tor
W^lii0 hinit^If looks like a Urge lomaro
on two bright bkc! logSn and when he jumps
h& fli-^ ihtough the ^r in a grgic^iul arc bur
wiHi a coirtpli^bp k<:k of {uumaiion. Hia
ilenral work ii mucli mon& iMpr«fisive coti-
murtmg o£ ]af g«r ioothe<l jaws lltal chomp up
and down m^ her w^^k^. jmi lik€ /Me^riajj.
Wallje has to ^ud (he 40 chopping itams
and take them to the cheokomt desk Tive at a
SECOND opnnoN
Quite C0t0utfiilin s iackyS0r( cf w^y,
bur i/f&/^ >i nothing very ^xcmstg aboiii
this budget irundle- 'ent-up. JVt^re 's
plenty to explore A]n^hr, hiit nothing
to do fljfcapf /ump ^t^und jnd pick
thmgs up. SiilL n's the closest we're
e-vei going t& get to a supermAJctet
here m Sbmeirorr,
AW
The first problem is to find the oheck-
out de^k, but Ol^Cf^ /Ou''r0 to^^t^ that
Ihejre's ^ lot of tough ahopping lo do/ As
Waliie moves aioiuid the eh^p the screen
■crolb when he gels near the edge lo
nSfveal rnore ol the maze. The larne hap-
pens when hn goes up or down ladders to
get between tiie shopa different floors.
WaUie {l9e«n't have to copi^ wjth old
ladies pushing squeaky lroUoy$ ^jid acting
like they're m a detnohtion d^fby. but h&
does ha¥e to deal wiOi a mAsA d dangeiB
The main tiangar lit filial falb. wbic^ cah
happen all loo eaaUy du? to the disappear-
ing floors, conveyor belta and long Jumps
that have to be Tiegotiated. Any one of these
could dump him inio « drcrp ihai oo«ti a life.
Dmigem come m many f^rms, som^
static and others moving. Fungus <m ih^
floors and tstitings are a <;9mstant ha2ard
Cdon'i shop here for &>odl), while somi^
JXHiy aeestm to have activated ki«r security
dyvlddna sjid aome nasty iJidi^g doors
before locking up fifti*. W«Bi« can be
S2 JUIiY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
«tOpp^ in his trades by any ol tjiem and
sent back to his etartmg position^ Mijiii$
anolhc^t lae.
Th0 tshop is alao i^troUed by aome
vicious mortittera that pxobably mutatAd
from the f otbng lue^t tr^es^r. Thj^y nio-?c
along in patterns on some floors, btinging
yei mor^ d«Aih if reached. Mast of these
ohsiad^s can be avoids by careMly
timed walks and jumps, but some oan be
very difGcuh to get past and will need
practice.
Less lethal ob^acles present them
selves m the iorm of walls that have to be
rem^TV^d by Qiddng a switch^ ot conveyor
bells tbiat run the wrong way and hav^y to b&
lumpod along Ei^orati^an m e-sventialt a^d
Tinol yciij*re lomihar wiih ihe laywit of ihia
rnaiUt^ mark&i you*l] ne^^d to b^j very cai&hil
when scrolling at the ^dg^ oi the acreen.
The grapluci ar^ pa;!»$abl« biil sufli^r
from mmm nasty «1oiit clashes when Wal-
iie pas9«3 through iaddei^ find other areaji.
T1|j^9'» ^ome exceJle^il tftti mn^ic of a Jii^an-
M^uti JliXt« track, but ^0 m-game so^snd
mS^<:^ Me simple* The game is rather old
in concept bul still pr0««n{s a toiigh chal-
l^rngft to platibrm gzune fans.
BW
^ Lafge setoUlng piaytiig ajea,
> Good aiaay of ol^sfactes and dianf eiM^
^ Very tough ttrying to get all otthm
shopplitg.
B
S
> Nasty 90lo«r cl&slies whj&n objects
overlap,
^ It's an old giLiit« with old gAineplay .
> Collision detection isnM good^
particiiUrly tor vendcally sUdlng 4oof«-
GHJEEN SCREEN VffiW
Everyihmgs vmble, bat colour w^
oiiv of the game "s better featuros.
GRAPH CS
SONiCS
GIM8 FACTOA
52%
srAvi^cpowinr
■^«:mii;ii^66^
I
I
u 1 1 1 L
i
Wlthoat doubi . I h^ Am&tniJ rjngt' of Lompu te^i forces against the cmc( dk taior A t m c head to
^ laipldly cstabltshingliself at t be forefront of i h^ head' ptti^ w tth vo ke simuiat ton and superb
peisorial micfo indusiiy. multi Rfp^i^n gniphtcs.
;i me?! from
enhance ^
PUy The Game haw produced ^ seni^ ol
stunning conversions^ designed lo exploit the
bcsl fcatuies of the Amslrad imuQ^
Her^ 31^ four oii tsranding cl;»ssit ca me?! from j
Qurever increa:^ng range that will enhance ^1
any soft^va re collect ion .
Diiccl from the Arcades of Aincrica
ronicsKUNG ru MASTER. Martial ait
e)cpen_*;,ind demons of e^-ery deKfip^
lionaie yourobsiacles in ihis fast
peed video Mtion thriller To
tiaiwl through the Wizard's
lemple lo restue i he hi r ma iden
you must avoid de^on$, i
n
Ik!
dragons, snakes and killer beea ^
Be wan? of weapon: wielding
hencluneii and defeat each of
the deadly guardiaiis to advance t
10 each of the fivt* flooK. Yoqi only ^
defence is your martial art skil^
Sequel to the highly acclaimed Beach- ^
Hccid. BEACH HEAD II onceag^m pits the allied
GUNFKtGHT capttires the atmo?sphem of the
Old West at its wMc^X worn! As Shenff
Quiekdraw you'll have yout hands full just
^^"■■""'■i yyuTstflf and Lhe lownyfolk alive, iie^'er
iQAnig wiih the likes of QiiKk Draw
McGraw, fastest gun in the West!
Hnally there is DAMBL'b'l ERS^ "lliissjtnutstion
really ne^ds no introductioni an ace Lira te
npconsrructiOTiof rtl7 Sqiaadrx^nsepi^: Second
World War raid on die Moehiio. Eder and
Sorpe Datn^ in Germany's Lnd List rial
hoartbnd: DAMBUSTERS is already
r^earded as an al!-Eime software
i All thf^^rtj yrfc3 1 tzamei^aiitr available
I now especially for the Anistrad
A at betcer computer stores,
nationwide
>^^^
'M'.
iirr:^
u
DISK £14.95
CASSETTE £9.95
miMXk-
A En
^
f^^.:^.
■^
SeleN^ted US. Gold & LltinuLc Play The
u _'\jUL-f-^u L.^ flame pioduf:t uvavsiliihk^ FrOin selected
[THEEMWiE hrDiichesof:
g^ ^jssufadm WHSMUH
HEAVY ON THE MAGICK
Gargoyie. £9.95 c*iss, £13.95 disc, keys only
Ever since ccmput&r gamei flmt fkishiSKl
QTito ^ aere&n oj tapped onfo a leietypo,
aj|Jinji^ prog^^iruTL^rs have dr^diml o( itie
InteiiactlTtt movie'. Now. ia;i>^r diac^ ^mei
apait, Gaigoyle kav«; come up wift wlmi
mii£t bQ mm Of Use b^t atlompcs so for to
H^Avy OB tji© Ma0ck 0ve9 y o^» « ftoriz-
onta] window display of V^^ 1 Ji"
duding tlitj i^haidciei you contiL.. .. .. . ::ier
vdtli thj&e izifozmalion panels ir tho bottom
of the gcr«eii. The fint of thea^
infarniddmi. on yo\ii mii'aniary, ni
fta^fius, aiid imoiediaie locatiQa: iho aecojitd
liTQgram'd ^#pliei; Uio third k««pa am eye
on your stairunap ikiHn and ly ck
A^d ludc you're got^g to rkocd, rny
g^tio indeed. Aaril the; AJale, whose life
dapends on youx keyboard qntries, has
be^n contnod to li»* dtuigeonfl beneath
CoHodon'a Pfle by Master 7heti03\ ih© Wiz-
ard- Somewhere tn this nitJlrt'E^vei: nighF
nmre W* three 6<xils wt-'- '" ' iiat find
wjth (he aid ot his wiiE ii: . . :jlL
At th^ srart oi iho g^ii^ yoii a^re d-
iocsLlod values for Staminn, SkiU, btijI tydc.
A typiQAl ijijtiid alloc&tidil would bo about
34 p 12. and 3 resp&ciSvoly. Mid i\ you drniH
fancy thta you c^ti nw^p tho vaiueH aioimd,
0¥ing for ^starnple }2 foi^ St^LiniJ^^, 34 for
SkiUi and 3 b^ir Luck^ As a g^iiojal mie,
hjowever. Che b#giTmfiit will pir^by^ly v^^sit
es much Stamina a£ he C4n Hiiuster.
ANIMATED
ADVENTURE
Onw you're left tte IniTiftJ s^i up
acieeri you fiiid yourn^lf in a room with two
Tjibl$!$, OJ1& of which boaia a magicfcal
Grimoire (spoil book to yon and iiue), tlte
other bearn a mossogo of a more tata!
Mture ' touch It sund yau dip hojJrJbly. This
is typi<:al of thft pUSail^S tn the l^arUdr pari Of
the game where, for the mosi paii. provid-
ing you exi^ninc! things carefully befofe
kandlmg (hem. yott shouldn't hai^e too
mu^ nrouJ^Je - tiMein you happen to due in
part of ! nn foi iliis 15 Owt th«
.umboi of M . :. ;'.r optiow are not that
^t The program d€ip*jtd* oii kaybMJrd
try, bui restricts you to a;n unuaual two-
word 9tructur€t which lakes the formiil
KEYWORD DEJECT. Tliercj arc in fwt Only
six ba.iic keyvi^'ordA, oadi of whi^ jji en-
toied u^ing a ^ingie key-piesi. These aie
2, which logglev &ie informstioii di^pl^y ui
one of the panels between inventory, luag-
ick, 9xits» JMid [oo&don det^ljai- O^ wfaidi
retuxna yoo lo the Optioiis screen (lo Sftvfi a
gam^ iOS 03&£mipSt]; X, for eXimin#: I* tor
Pick up; And B for Drop.
In addition lo !he above you've got
fnovemenf in ^ighl direction? andi At ihe
Stan of tt«? gam^. three spiills. The sp<^llf
are your ofily M^line wh^n you set out, snd
ihey gtve you the powo^ to Invoke a
damori. 01 blW^/fr^fMe an appOh£Uit. Ev^n
though the ub& of worde m limited it's
9EC02TO OPENIDN
Carg^afie r&aJIyh^v^ managed to
achieve &om^thwg special here by
combtiuixg ihi^ir proven ffr^pMc
atdihtis wiih ft testing Advmttui^
Advmttuieiw will be ^f^f with ibe
i; 'p/eaafe thesfpaed wtih wMch Ihe-
g.di:nc canbephnyed and the
^tntoSphi^nc screen ^luma tii^U
Tlti'fv s only one woid to describe this
-j,'^;rje - wagick.
BW
olaiimed thai Hie program understtnda 400.
Further on in the gamsi however, the
pii2qd^[i bficomi^ somewhat tougher iq
cxBck. Many of th^m depoiid on WMdp5ay
or tho oorreiqt m^ of objpctii round, md
you'll find yours&Lf having lo listen very
earefuQy lo Apa^ if you'ti* lo rise up
through the rankB of rritigickal mpatery.
There aie lour dettkons to invoke *
Asmodoe, the Pnnoe of DǤeniction, Atfarot
(who caji irimspo)rl yon lo a nam^d plac^),
Beleibar (who can f«vea] the iialuie ol an
object), and Magol fwho lalla you where
things &jte]- You won't crack the gmne
without using th^j Darcioni e^ctfi-njivaly, b^t
you can*t gtit them lo appei^r until you've
found the talisman thai conuola ihent. Aa-
modef!^, ii go^i without saying, should be
u^&d with caution.
The game area cover? ESS difTerent
^oonis. has 380 obj^<ma and going by the
Fllg's ilow progr^afl, as enough |o keep you
busy foT quiti^i a whilo, I discovered fifty
different iocationa within an hour, and there
are wver^ cMir«ni l^v^l*.
Mapp" ■ Ufficulf sin!d6 you
have i'. iLci a differ-
ant mEp for oach level
showmg the «IMr-
waya ihai comvaci ihsun. Most of the imtial
piLsiIes litvotve the Dp«mng of doors,
which wUJ respond either to paaiworda or
iho preaonce of particular objects. To help
you here, ihara'i an ogre caUed Apex who
wUl appear occaaionally and anawor your
questions.
In faa any object ox cha;ia^er can be
Dommmucated with, uaing tha stniciur^
'CHAJUICTER, OBJECT. For example.
*'APEX, TABLE may elicit the helpful m-
ipoTLBe IT'S A TAll^. or pcssti^ly iome-
ihing a little more levealing. As a gwiftrai
rule, howevir, the best form of communio-
mion iM blastUig. On youf trav&la yoti wilt
communicate thus wtih counties trolls, wy-
v^ems, goblins, v^mpsr^s and other itnplaa^
aani izharaciera. many of whcHn are likely to
send you lo an early grave d you don'l
either blast £ait or run faaier.
Every commsmd you enter wlM re^t in
soTPie action on soeen, even tf Aiil only
shrugs h4a shouldera in incomprehension.
Mosi aetiOfkS drain your energy by a point
or two, and some increase II, Once your
energy reaches ^©ro you're ctead. bul
happily you will find that saving gaones at
the end oS «ch amission i«tU «aabte ymi to
reiam y^ui ejg^nance ratis^ for future
andeavoutni. This is ■—-"-'-* ^^-^au^e
o^pfinencfi govQiTis yc . : auid
increases the numbfitr ^ spells avaiiei^Ja 10
you.
!jiu:
eni
34 JULY 19B6 AMSTRAD ACTIONt
f coiIoijIs or^ the
Apey
./
^arn
.?, ^m^^j
m^^
SK
mu.
^ m e^
.to-
M$
ir
i^^i
I.
. "lowing
Thfr tcKl screen
the gome
^,Hi
Vi
)
7:
?J
s
Ihql will ppm^ rn
hOfidy for opcningi
D dnar
Aptx th* Ogrer
iw pfui if iroyi a»4t
htm Ihertgfhf thhg?
In (90T, to 3o<^ii all thrae possible esd^
in the game you wiU hav^ to rise (t^m ih^
lowly posilion of Neophyte to ilie c^K^r^
r^iik ^ 4ih Grajc^ Fhilosptma. This wiJ)
involve a fair bit of gamepky and puzst^
BJolviTig, and qtiitaiii demioriS whoae aid i^
nscsitM bur w!w c^miot be mvoked unti!
YQu h&va f&ached the reqoislie ejcpenciigG
level, Gaxgoyle have i^Tinuited thai future
gani^ will provide fuitha^ ehiU^ageti and
Oie opportunity to nae y^ higher in the
jckal social dxcle,
Et'a a pity lliat tlidf^ aren't ^c^e l€Xi
opt30nfl available, and that aAirub of ihA
objects ar^ a Ut^e h^rd to pk± obi on a
green sczieGii. But, these minor ttiggles
apart, this hoi to b<i i^^e of the b09t options
yet for anyo£i^ interMt&d m a spot of
d^^rring-do down in ihe> dungeons, com-
bmed with pJenty of p«7^e«. pli^asing
gxuphjci. and aiufn&tiozi iiiito xh^e baigaiEi.
pUpC?
m^
OBEEN ECHEEN VIEW
Mt& Jt litti^ h^i:d to id&ndfy
AW
£K4?«lieml girapMc dlvplaT and
acEslnuiiloi]^
Ftenly of Ic^atioBs^ dbfects a^d
tl0tJ):0fpilJS^l«1|p
Clo«eit thing yel to> mn iKiteraottTe
Single koy prifss entry ipeedi 1
gftJtia- up toniiderabty.
A really toitf h gaiae to crrack,
Wf |] appeal to b oth adirantiure and
%i!cadi3^ play era alike.
Tenl entry ia
timitihi.
GRAPH fCS
89%
>:■:■:
^^ssri
SONtCS
41%:
.'.'.■.
>^« 1
:: :=: : r^Kfii^ 1
I G1tA8 FACTOfl
ftf:-
-'^'■'■'■^^BIH
: STAYING POWER
QC a /
'-•--^^I^^^H
3b /*
.■ i" ■.
-'•->'r:
wi»T»»>iMgf«b««ni»foi*AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 19B6 S5.
THE ADVENTURES OF BOIiv...Ji^/i£ftj;£.u j!»1
Basildon Bcmd is th& crealion of comedian
Ruj?a Abbott and. slong with some other of
HuSs'b charactQEs, he is the staj of this
esrplojffition and joke solving game. The
aim is to rescue Russ from a ri-ral comedy
act by pulting together some of thO oldest
jokes known to man.
The acUon lai^es place in the TV
studios, where jokes and answers are to bo
found by seajching the iraxiou^ bitfr t?f
equipment &nd furmture. You control Bond
a$ he Tuns aroutid the 2D rooms ihat make
tip the studios, and although the character
iy. The rooms are colourful, but again lend
to be on the blocky side.
Tl^ere are many objects to be found
lying aTOund the smdios sudi ^ video
tapeSr TV remote qontrols, ^earphones and
electric kettles, most of which are uaed foi
searc^ng furniture. To search a piece of
furniture Bond needs ^ ^p^cific object.
Which parhcular object searches which bit
of furitiEure has to be discovered by ttial
and error* Tha oombmation stays the same
throughout a game but, changes for each
new game.
To g*t between rooms Bond merely
has lo run mto a door which wiU cieak open
and takd him to the next room. Some rooms
have different leveia of platforms to ex-
plore and the.se are connected either by
^tairw^ys or boom c?ajR«ras that can be
moved up and down like lifts. The playing
area is quilc large and a fair bit of eaqplor-
~ . .■ #•
i
mi
7nBflEwj>T
■:^"'!'-:
;>■;:::■&
1*
1^
r^'.
i^i^m
■'•■'• ' ■■[■.■
M%
^€
^^tt
]::^y^
■
■UdgtH
V
^^^^
GUN FRIGHT
UEtimi]ti2.-US Ggjd. C9.95 ^^^^. 04.9S ffiscJoyfiH':^ ^x keys
When Ultimiite brought out ATjoje S many
people cried rip-aff because of its simikrity
If} Knighf hor^. N^w th^y ai^ Si&t to iac& thn
same problom with th^ wifd west romp^ as
it iDokis like Nightshade - and ihifi rime the
game dO^^n't comfi out amelling of ro^es.
The game is set in a mid west town
where yoUp as the SheriS, have Eo hunt
down and Jdll outlaws for the bounty. Th*
town IS ^^wn Lei the sAm# 3D peTspective
as NIghtshad& and Knighi Lorn, with buiM*
mg fronts disappearmg ajs the Sheriff wall^
behi^Td them, so that you can ^e# wti^S
fou're going. Buildingi^ can be entered
through open door^, but ilieine'^ nothing of
int^ief I ihdfda unless on^ of the oLticr gam^
cliAf«cl«rs is already in thi^ri>.
The town m populated by an esttremely
Anni;rying and stupid group of p@opl« who
ae^rri Intent on stopping flie Sheriff doing
hie job^ There are lots of women who
wander aimJ^gsly around andK when ihey
bun:tp into you, k£l you. Tlufi doesn't seem
like civilized behaviour to m«, but is as
notbirv^ to tha faqt thai humpmg into .s?n^
children and cacti also knocks off a life. You
can of oourwe shoo4 these mnoo^it by-
standers down whon thsy get in yotur way
but you'U be fined for it, reducing your
bounty.
Th-e putlawE «pp«ar one at a tune and
before you can gel into a gunfight you^Q
have to find tliem. Thi3 can be done by ]ust
wandering around Hi^ town, but ih^ chi]-
df on will help guide you to them Ihcy
^UQQ2
«se
'?
ane:
»7S
56 JULY 19B6 AMSTRAD ACTION i«« «.,***
f
Howd)^ yoyll Thai
Ifoybl* wTih
,^^^k
^s^^
^Ay
-'■■■■
^^H
■:■:■
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1
^^
ll
*^-.V 'B35
1
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^■1^-;!
t ^
^:- ::■!
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fe-
«
t
J
iE:^'L":o-- ■;:'
i
mm
i
alioit aod mapping i$ t^q^mired.
Many rooms have killer canicras that
patrol up and down thP flooi and plartotms.
and these ar^ Bond'^ mam darigers, If he
ruiws Into them he's sent baek to the start
room and loses ten minutes off the five hour
time limit. They can be stopped in two
ways: Either by having a magnet in the
same room which freezes thero, or by using
aCooperbLister.
Coopc]:blaste£s are liraited in supply
hu( cau3? either Cooperman or llunder-
woman to appear on screen. One of them
bounces diagonaUy around the sqroen. kill-
ing any cameras u comes into coniaot with*
and the QTh^r moves straight across the
screen while yoti move it up or down,
trying to hit a camera.
OncQ you fipd part of r joke it has to toe
taken back (q the start room and logged
into a compui0r before 'the face^ appears
?uid geSa yoUp removing the jok& buck to its
sEartmg position, Once logged, the jokes
and answi^ra h*ve iq be matched up lo
provide the jokes in all Uieir ageing glory,
and believe me they are oldejt VhAn Max
Bygiave^s.
SECDITO OPINION
Plf^llty of IQOIUS 7Q CK
they're ^11 A3 ugly *? anythinffr Ifycu
c&n put up with ^ th^tharribl0
chunkmws dicugh, you h^vc a Jiiige
and difficult game. f!fte gamitpiEy's ^
hit Fep^iifiv^ and the jokes ai^e
andent but i( iS ^e only q^me arcund
that features Biard^rwomaii aiid
that's got to i?e worih something.
AW
The graphics are distinctive md
colourful, but chunky so that flie rooms
often hav« a gazish look \o them. The
gameplay isn't particulaxLy addictive but
does present a t^iugh chaJJenge as you try
lo link up objects and fumuute^ At first it
seema veiy uiUitipTesBiv& hut the tactics ol
exploring, avoiding cameras and trnding
jokes grow on you to make a reasonably
enjoyable game.
BW
GREEN SCREEN VIEW
Thos^ fiwfal graphics ^le even worse
in mono, but you can stiils£&
e^eiythingr
AW
^ Large playing area to «xp] art.
^ Many vJ^jects and pieces of furniture
to lind and aearch.
^ A tough garae task with plenty 10
overcame.
> Graphics are chunky bji4 g^idsll.
P- Little depth to the garueplay, it's just
mnning abound swapping ol&Jects and
searching.
GRAPHICS g^
■S$:-*^^^^B
SOKICS^I
"m^
isoAQ cArTnnBflRI
'■'-'^-%T-^f4 xnoH
urijHiQi rjRiii 1 un Mnfeffi
.•y.-:«fSSi fSSSH
'•-■^^-^^^MmitHIHWK
STAYING POWER g^
A A RATING [IB
bounce up and down on ll^ spof polnlMg in
Ihe dlrecljon oi the target, mmmg lo face
hilt* if he moves axour^d ,
Qi^ce you've located the imd quy you
need la shoot him once to get onlo the
giurfight BCieon, Hero the man appear? iti
2D on the screen, and a& Boon aa he draws
I
SECOm> OPINION
Thi^ ono's not pint dvnvauve - it's also
rather dull, Theie's a targe town you
can explore should you want (0, bn : : r
all looks the aame, so why boOter? As
far Action, those wommn wiJl diive you
up f.'jt? wall hut dodging ihem is harcUy
.iddJctivQ, The horses are funny at
first, and the town }OCk$ goad -hui
once that ivear^ otf^ ther& isn Y much
ieft.
AW
his gun you hava lo move 4 eureor onlo him
and let hirn have it, otherwrn? he'll riddle
yau with bul^or^. Dmw too early and you'U
be br^ded a cheats ending up wiih yet
more holes in you.
Once you have difpoged of one killer
you have to track down another with a
higher bounty on km head, an^ of coufne a
<|ijickor diaw. The appearance ol th^ hU-
lers changes but isn't aiwayi appro]>rlale, 1
mc^m Ma Baker in ih* wild w^i and with
hve o'clock ahadow?
Apart froiii ihe chiJdn>ii ihe only other
help yoti get are from horses wh^ch can be
'ridden' if you wvuit to move &Ater. They
donU Iftfit for very long, but while ftiey do
you C4h ttaiup^ ^omen inc) childreai
under foot - most gratifying; BuUois and
horsdft both cost money Oiough so yoii
won't want to use toq many of ^llberr
At the at^t of the game and after every
lew outlaws there is a bonus scraen whei^
you C^ prftcticn ahooiijEig bajg^ of gold-
Thifl fihould prepare you fox the Tight
flcrcmns and helps tlie bank balance. Ano-
ther thing that appears ii you Aoot enough
tuon axe b^lls of lujTtJble'ff«ed that blow
arourtd the screen, makinig your progress
more dangerous.
The graphic^ and ^cdon are tar X0q
cloao to Nightshade lor comfort, and
although titie game Is xnore tnieresting fJxan
itg pr^di^ces^or it loses a lot because oE its
I*ck ol Oiiginaiity. If you've gel Nighishffd&
ihifl probably i$n't worth getting but \£
you're fresh lo Ultunjite's gani^ then 11
should impress- lite action is guile com-
pulsive and Oie ganie has a good iionso o[
humour, bu( thoae women-folk are tremen-
dously tumoying as they behave n^ore like
0Ud4V^ in drag tjiin law abiding dlis^jetts - i
say wa&[& 'em with a h^ of leaden death.
BW
GREEN SCREEN VIEW
CoJOLir isn 7 a strong point of this game
so it plays One in green - but the
original yeUaw was a bitinorB
^tmcsphetii:.
AW
N
W S
P" tntiiEi&te'a u&\iail excellent gr^^phicci.
1^ Oreat sense of humour fo the actian.
1^ Compuiai^e and tough g^isie taflk.
^ Nice addlti<snal t?j$»ifk9 for ohootouts^
B
W
^ Mun gHinvpliLf t» jiiRt like
tfifhtMhadm.
^ Iiittle depth to the action, you keep
doing tile same ehinf .
SONICS
GRAB FACTOR
STAYING POWEfl
A A RATING
86%
74%
73%
m
:^S^:
AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 SI
I
■•if i.&
I
THE DAMBUSTERS
US GDld/Sydnav. C9.96 cass, EH.9S disc.
T^ur task w lo recre^Tt oi\e of the mo#t
faitioui air Jraida isf flue SecoFnd World W*f ♦
li:^ which LAncasler boml>ers from 617
squadron d^atroyed d^jrn« ajid flooded thfi
Kiihr v^ley. pAH of Gentiiiiy'd induitrial
hs^nJa^d^ Th« oTigiiijii mianon iuc>c«edied
but fou have the <>pppottwufy to try il tor
youtiftlf - TTiftyba you'll mm.
'nt^re are three teve^ lo chc^tie from
thftt atarf you at dilferajit points m tiie
miAsion. Th^ Eurat Juat 0ve« you fh^ appro-
lach Fo ^« dsnv t^e ■^coM puifi ymi over
the l^glifh chaj[inet with the whot^ ot Eu-
rope to croe^p and the thitd ptiti you on Hie
giouiid ar Soamplon airfield in narth-^ai!!
England. The^Be a^^ tti£:c:«aively h^Tder Eo
OCimplttte J^ecay^se of the jobs you hav« to
■pefform suad th# defences you Cac^.
5
&ECQNB OPINION
It's ait a pretty sUly ide^ givinff you
S€>ven pecpJ&'s fob$, but it's th^ only
rhinq that 0v&s ihc g^iue any^mying
pov^rer. Grfiph^c^Ily unexciting ^itd
sonicaily ^pp^iUmg, this is a real soJve-
mnd-iorget jcb.
aw
Qn aH Hie itll^mms yOu do Xh& }0h& ot
Ihe sey^n rarew memt^ejs of a amgle hsn.-
caatei bomber, li onJy caries one t»omb 40
thai yoti can ofilf destroy one dam. aiad %e
game ends aftej: it ia dropped whether you
Bu^:ic0^d or iwtr There aie ihr^a b^ic
p^obbjty^ Oiat h$:iro to be overcoiue m
order to complete A\jt mlsaiou: leammg to
JQy ^« plane p avoiding the Genrum d«-
;li^ju?e# tod dxoppmg th^ bomb on larget,
to achii^ve thesa you n^^ to perform all
Beve^ )obf wilh speed ^utid accuracy.
The pJliQt screen ihovra a view tiixotigh
the oookpit and the inatmmems, indicatiiitg
Might, direction, horteoii and 3i>&@d- From
here you have to fly the plane using the
joystick and aet the correci course ior
fpproacbjng liie dam^ Thia ties up much df
the rime with the two engineer a<ireen* (one
in the n^o ahortened mi^sion^)^ On th$ fi?Bt
aM
NUCLEAR HEIST
Flayers. £1.99 c.is^. inv&liEk or keys
You've ^eea plenty of left-iight ahoot-em-
ups, well tliis is an up-dov^n one from
hitetceptor'3 new label. It comprises two
secuona ihat go together to make one un-
on0nal< in/pnarmg, awful gftme.
You control a heiicopt^r fhat flies ^t the
left liand side of the screen and can lie
moved up and dowri. It fir>^a laser bolte
very rapidly in a stream of deadly death
towards tho ngtsl hand side of the screen.
From ih^ right appear aJien ciafi who fry to
luako II to the left of Ihe display, and have to
toe Stopped to prevent you losing a life.
The aliens don'E just move towards
yoti, they fire ^t th^ chopper as w&ll^
destroying it if it's hit. The alien fire can be
quite conceiitraied. and up to four of Ehem
can toe on screen ^i once. Wh4?n they gei
about half way across ihcy slop firing and i
t|iEH4^ ttiagniBcenil
incm in Itlifttr n^ng
mo^pl1^? vifrw Hie
Germany
:^"i|:.^
sofeetn you control the ^igines witfi thrott-
les and b^^aters to set the sp&ed, and tire
ea^tingmsherff il an engine is ael on fire. The
second screen is needed for tak&-oO^ and
controls the rudder, flap$, landing gear and
fu^I indicatory.
The navigator's screen con&iats of
maps showing *he territory over which, the
plane is passing. These inctude detadla on
population, mOitary and mdusttisl centres,
airports, radar stations and the dams. This
ahouJd warn you of the typ& and weight of
Apposition you'll face flying over differed
areas,
Tha ft.oni and tail gunner ecreens are
the l»a^c^tstor's maan$ of defence agajnai
Eke three ertemy threats. Th^ae sre night
fighters, barrage ballDom and searchlightB,
aH of which can be shot, Jlight fightera can
damage Ok^ plaiAe, barrage baUoons can
c^uge you to crash if you fly into them,
while aeaichUghts can home the Gak in on
the piano. Non« of thi&tn are very diEEtcuh la
shoot but can ^atch you unawares when
you're concentrating on other icreens.
The bomb aimer Bcre^it is where you
:rsady the bomb for dropping. To succe?-
fully destroy the dam Ihe plane has to be
trai^cUing at the nght speed, height and
direction, and the bomb has lo be released
ar the correct moment. The screen are all
quite rucely design&d but the actual (lying
graphics aren't very impreMJve. The en-
gine and machine gun noiias are also
weak, leaving a iot depending on the
gameplay.
rt's quite difhcuji io compleee the whole
mission and you'll ne*d a fair bit of pract-
last minute inteivention by the heli<:opter
can prevent disaster.
When enough aliens have been de-
atroyed you move to the second srag^ of
the action which involves very fast reac-
tions. The helicoptor goc$ into hyperwarp,
which means a whol^ bunch of white dots
whizs across the screen towards i\ very fast
indeed. AW you havf^ lo do is avoid the dots
for a little while. Even if you're ready for
the slart of this section the helicopter may
hit a dot befoie youVe had a chance lo
move, and one wndiig twitch will spell
disaster.
U you survive the hyperwarp you're on
to another alien blasting section, but wilh a
different breed of alien and a lot more of
them to kill before you can movo on again.
The waves are qujie difficult to suxv-
ive, tout consist of mindles* and repetitive
acljon. Their most annoying fealisre is that
wherever you die the choppor is always
returned to the stati of a level with all due
aliens still lo be shot and the hyperwarp to^
sun/ive. This combination makes the whole
SECOND OPINION
Now litis is whall cull bad. Thei^e 's a
thin Iln^ heiweeji clever And Stupid,
but A'li^fear Heisiisn^i &ven close, it's
Just iik& ihose slalom g^mcs o/oycf,
with a bit ofslrooilng fhtcwn In. You
hold the fire button down, y&u dodg&
thebuUeis, ycu d^dgr^ fJie .things m
'Ajrperw^ jp ' that look c)(^ct!y like
buU&is, yaii tvojider why you
tottt^r&d.
AW
ching tmmenBely frustrafmg and guaran-
teed to have yau breaking up the furniture
after iust a fow mmutes (you j^ouid see the
state of the oifice after Bob played this one!
-Ed)
The gan.i- niivjnd ejects are quite JoUy
58 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION T^t^idiy^..
ice, but once you've dono il Hh&tm ^eemi
little i^BA^m to come back to the game,
Whil& placing you ^^ coMtutiy bwy
Krying to do seven jobB, and thJs l£ prob-
iLbly Ih^ g'ainiM tftiong pouil. The dam
approacih wiU tak« a fow niti^ to mMt«f , but
d sucxesfuJ attaclc wijl probably be gx^^ted
with divappomtmejit b«cau»&, allhough you
g«t « pictvue of the dtam, it doexn't 6xplod«,
coUapM or branch at «!], ii ju*t feUi you dial
E^ci bomb hit.
On the Wtiole 1 fouiid thii lathar dliap-
pointing. It's gets a fair amoimt of atmoaph-
arfl fcoitt the preaentifion Ot bgth the in-
stxuctiora and the n^reem; bm ft« iptrtw
itvolf peredfl polishing around the edg^it. It
certainly <:aj^"t be caUed a flight sirnulator,
b^t uhtil you iUi!CA«d in completing the hill
miasion it may provide some hoars of
challenge.
BW
GRtZN SCREEN VIEW
The W:^ iBir > simost m visihj^, hu t yea
don '!: really ^^9d fo ste it anywsy.
ilW
G
W
^ P)«nty to do thsrotiglioiLt Hhm gaxci#.
> Ktettlr prMflnted tutnetf ona ajid
aalfeena.
^ Ca}npl«tt^g tb^luU mlialoia la a iaif
ch4.11«:[ig4«.
i
W
^ ftottnti i^ftitd: ajlMli^
^ t>tvappo£Atliig eiLdlng,
^ Omc# c^)raeli£ed yoiL pnoibably womi
wmnt to pt&f afaln.
GRAPHICS
SONfCS
GRAB FACTOR
STAYING MMft
A & RATING
51%
22%
66%
51% I
1%
Tris helkopter
blpsts a^ffy en the
left qI the aliens
ofi Ih^ rlghl — can
you &(ciy awoKc?
hm the graphics are very eunple and Euffei
frsn r.icker Even as a bu^ige! liila iliis isn't
very wnpxessive because it's m ^ery old
idaa viith diabolical gamsplay.
BW
GREEN 3CR£eN VtCW
BVAjytliiiig^ visible moTe 's the pity.
AW
GOOD NEW
S
^ Doesn't dlfealile Ae reset keys.
BAD a t W
$
► Very old gmme Idea.
^^ Mindless repetitive gajneplay^
^ Only two ^taga«.
^ Siinple^ flickery graphics.
P" Infuriatlngly eas;y to get killed when
there^s nothing you can do about it«
GRAPHICS
£0NtC5
GMBFACTOft
STAYING POWER
A A HATING
51%
25%
4%
9%
m
VOODOO RAGE
Aiitnriif^ [] .99 DOSS, jny^uck ci kcy^
Despite the imaginatiyo title this ia in fad
^uss another platfoirm game, the mo^l not-
ice^le (eatuxe of which is the appallmg
SCeHiario thai EQimds more like somethkig
out of a Bernard Manning 'comedy' routine.
Basically il'a about a wife trying to stop
bubble playing computer games; a sexist
scertario and a j&imple. old gama combined
IQ itiakci: one bad package.
Tt^^ro arc 20 screens to gel through in
sequence, and on eaoh one you have lo
pojriorm die familiar task of picking up all
ihe objeols on acr«#ri whil^ avoiding the
n^uianl cre^tucoa trying to slop you. The
pladormf on whit^h all ihis takes place look
ditfereni on each acreen but behave m
exactly the same «ray. Your character can
watk on ih^m. ot froeliy jun^p through them
to gee up the screen.
SECOKB OPINION
PlAif&na gAmes are dred enough if
ihey'r& rfane welh hat ihis onopum
*^jn to sleep for good. Thescen^o
WOuJd ilJSuJi th^ intelligeiics of a sla^,
3iid die gamepl Ay isn't much h&fi&r -
rotten coUisioit de/ertioitj arr
unojjgifict/ task and bating screen
Myouts make fornothing^l^uf red'ium, A
great tirte mcked onto a miserabls
gmtie.
AW
The husband appears on a pLatform
which also contains a video game consola
of ^ome sorL He wanders randomly to and
fro on the pLatfoim, and while he's doing
that you can'! touch him. However if he
slarts playing at the console and youVe
picked up a rolling pin you can go and beat
him up for bonus pom?.^. He do^\iv\'i go lo
the console very often - I wonder which
game he's fin^ipposed lo be playing?
The screens are quite simple in design:
you have to avoid all the creamres ttial
move^ and collect anything that doesn't
Coniact with a monster, or a long fall,
daims one of your (hree lives, but most
problonis can be solved by throwing a
voodoo rage'. The instructions tell us that
fhia Is 'Like having 30 mothers who all iaae
their tempers at the same time', and if
they've seen this game Tin hoc in the le^^t
bi: surpriwd.
A rage will last for ten seconds and
during that time the ciea lures are frozen
and can be louched without haTm. You only
have t^n of the^o mgm «o u*t but thoy
make the job cortsiderably easier while in
operation- Even with a rage on you are suit
auaceptible to long ^11^ and death from
hitling the bottom of the screen.
The creatures and objects are qyjle
nicely drawn, but they me very smaU and i
the real of the screens axe uninieresiing.
Th« sound aftects are also simple, but the
game's big problems are that ft is totally
unoriginal, the gameplay is simple, and the
Ecenano awful. Cheap game, choap jokes
and not a lot of liu^ting interest
BW
OR£ EK ^CR£: E N VIEW
ni& second scr&&n is pretty Ji^d to
M^f JbMf titar <Wi <dl|jf bo 4n
Jmprov&m&nt
aw
N
W
^ Oef ttng thro agh 20 screens will be
tough.
> The 'lage' and husband beating add
some ozi^naiity^
N
W
B ft B
^ Old gajne idea, badly impleiiiemted.
> Awful scenario.
^ CoUision and jump deteotion aren't
good.
^ Screens aren't very invtimtive in the^
design.
GRAPHICS
f SQNtPS
I GRAB f ACTOR
srAvmcFOwes
A A HMWC
43%
!«%
32%
36*/«
3S%
r-K««
■ il* I
i
■■>:??■"*
mn* iioiMghu )K» >«fc.«. AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 S9
I
SPIKV HAROLD
Fiffibiad. CI .99 ca^s, [{lystick or kttys
Yet xact^ cutd qharji^tern feom Firebird;
Qiia rirpfi th<s h^xa being a hedgehog c<ed
Harold, trying (^ cope wift the hazards ol a
very hostile garden. Hte plGuatdal>l& ta»k
u Id try to collect 4JI the frait «id goodien
Oial hav« bean left lymq flLTOund ajr*d uuxdot
the garden, lo that he cbh pfepar^ for
MbematioiL
fhro-ughdut the ga^fi' With a isit more wOrk
Aikd iimagittatiorL it oould have looked a lot
^cfir, Thefe ignt mu-c^ soimd In U\e gam^
bar J! doea have a nice version of 'Plight of
ihf> BmtLj^Ieb^e' during *^ tiite s^ciecn ofid
Ap. tngjiflJi Gounuy Gwrden* w2iile th&
game ii Loading. The gfirrt^plJiy is quito
toughp putting s lot of preaaurc on th;i^
SECOND OPINION
The Enim^tion is okdyr hiirthos&
drab. Jls /or ^Amep/^ay^ there are se^m^
picfbus ft'jTjjng pi oii/tjmj but not a
grf^cif de^/ else. Iilafh^d for the
mQney. I suppose, butmor^ colour
and d hi^0r plAyi^g^ Aie§ tvould hoih
JLW
It's a platfoim/ exploration g^jme ut
which the garden is aplil ^p i»to three mam
^^Hfi. Thme's ab^rre gioiiixd where H&rald
caji Idee a s+rotl in the gxa^a, uj^d^rgr^imd
tunineEs composed o£ a very red clay soil
and ih^ pand where he caR g^c fUQt^ rhajTi
just his to^s wel. Ali three areas h^ve bits of
fauil ^lead arouKd them, and m addition
th^xa are oiher flowers loid objects lo
brighlen up the view.
Haiold i^ del jghtkbLly ^nmialed as he
niakeis his way around the ghas% garden.
Ho walks Drt his back legs, his spikes
bonxicing around on hk back, with a happy
look on hk fa^ wd a great jumpLng action
where ha cr&uche« ^nd then waggles Mb
legs as he Sies aorobatEoaUy thiotigh !he
air. You'll believe a hedgehog tan l?y.
He also displays an Impres^ve array o£
teelii ivheti he eats the goodies - pity he
doesn't use them on fhe gardens nasties,
t There are plenty of thmga 10 get his
gxta^hen into including applets, cherries,
grapes and Ihe odd glass oi win&. The -wrUie
has a rather unnerving effect oil Harry
b^^ui^ mitil h;^ gets oE the screen it
reverse* the comioK which can imhally be
rather corfusiiig.
The cither ^cumAls that thjaatsn Harry
are also well drawrt and animated: utclijd-
ing littli? chicks, waspA. Oica, woriiia, mice,
birds, ck^uds, (ish aiid wm^ decidedly non-
biol<:3g]cal threats. These feature on juat
about every screen and fciHqw moveii^ent
pattemB that hsv^ to be worked aul so that
they can be avoided more eafiity in thfi
future This is often tough because it re-
guire^ spht~se<::ond timing and hecaa^e th^
creature 'a movemeiil patterns mteraecl dtf-
fere^tly U l^h to repeat their rotitet^
Toaching any of the movteg animalt
with a finout, ^ike^ ^^^^ .^^ »^^ iMlt result
■in the lo*3 of one o< Harry's 2Q livias. TOat
may sound iike a lot of lives but ifs very
easy to lose theiti and you'll need #yery
one to compete, this task. Only ^sperience
will t^ach youtv^erft to go and when, bu^ in
pomB sirnatioits a suicide leap for a piece pf
tmif in naed^d.
The use of colour is didappoiptiii^
payers ttetog. but at h&arl it's pit a sunpie
esq^lore and collect fjffort. A good budget
title that 4hould qive a fair a^i^oimt of fun.
IW
P- Wall animated amd hiamorom main
characteE.
^ Some tou^h timiag probli^ms to deal
with.
¥- The water aad wtne glass^a are good
featoreB.
GREEN SCREEJf VIEW
Play3imej ^iid siHl looks dr^h.
AW
fl
H
W S
1^ Not ranch xite of a^tqiur-
► If you donH tiki& timing and pattern
problems it wois't be mucli fuici.
1 GRAPmCS
SONICS
GRAB FACTO H
STAVIMQ POWER
A A flATIfVG
5^%
51%
60 IIE.Y isae AMSTRAD ACTION t^e^^u,:^' <^.^
****STOP PRESS* '"'^'^STOP PRESS''''*'' THE BEST FRENCH
* SOFTWARE IS NOW AVAILABLE IN THE U.K.'^**'i'*STOP PRESS
i^
THE MIDAS RANGE OF ROLE PLAYING GAMES HAVE COMBINED WITH
ERE INFORMATIQUE OF PARIS TO BRING YOU A STUNNING RANGE OF
ARCADE ADVENTURES, STRATEGY GAMES AND UTILITIES, ALREADY CHART
TOPPING IN FRANCE. THE FRENCH COLLECTION IS NOW RECEIVING ACCLAIM
FROM THE UK PRESS - JUST READ SOME OF THE QUOTES TO GET AN IDEA
OFTHEQUAUTY „. ,.,. .., ...»,.
DEXTERfi
Inrjircerfitcfd In the prison headQU^irbfrs ot ihr luUolb that h^v€
€Xt€]tnini9ted all utlicr Itfif i>ii Eanli. you dr^ ^ waiting u'^hcileter evU
experiments th^y h^yt! in ytor^^ for you, wli^n you h^ar tW sound of
'A glrl*S voice through t\w b*ifs of your tdL Yoli are not nlone -
There is someone else left aUve - At last a reniSOfi to escape . _ .
FirtDHERr
INGENIOUS GRAPHICS - SUPEfiB NU5IC AND
P AtJLTl.ES*i PROGRAMMING GO lO MAKE THIS GAME
FANTASTIC^' is boHv onf French ina^iiieine'* d€4crJb^d
Dooraflday Blye«. the Afcadp Adwrturp to end them alii
^1 l>OOM5DAV BLUES is ih<! v^vvm vour Anistr<id hiis btun waiting for.
■ 'I IHHDOGICrEL -^ 14.02.86.
■ _* *• CBM M & SPECTRUM VERSIONS AVAILABLE SOON *•«•"-
"EXCELLEMT GRAPHICS. SOUND AND GAMEF1.AV
PACKED FUiX OF ATMOSPHERE - ANOTHER WINNER!"
AMSTRAD ACTION MARCH 86.
"GET
DEXTER!'^
£9,95 C
£14,95 D
The year \% Wi\%, the war on K^inh is tf^nrjilaring h<*vot^rf cgnlfOl.
Throughout sp^ci^ fhe cvluny lilcuiet^ ^k y^orzied. If the- tfrnlral
galactic co«t¥ol com|ii4«!r on Earth is destroyed aJl life on the planets
wUI periii^h with it.
You control DEXTER and his tnisty (Midcxrephaht!; SCOOTER in
their task of infiltrating the cq mput^r centre and copying the
[iiernaiv baitk^ in order thfit gAlcictic life can continue.
Th« nchni^s^ vA this g<inir. its high Tx.-solutlori cartoon quality
gr^phtrEs, its 50 dtffer^nt rwim^ and the gxcu|>tion<»l ^peed ol
bofh the 3D animation and game plau vtill leave you breathless!
THE Bl^l GAMH ever &een od an AMSTBAU!'
PICK OF THE WFtK ^ POPULAR COMPUTlHG
WEEKLY 13.03.86
-THIS GAME IS SET TO BE A MASSIVE HIT - GRAPHICS
AMD DESIGN SUPERIOR TO ANVTHIIVG ELSE ^
VERY FUNNY TOO" AMSTRAD ACTION MARCH S6.
CONTAMINATION £9,95 C £14.95 **•*•**** AVArtABLE soon ••**««♦
ANTI-VIRUS through to the hn al re»^Tt of whole^cate
NUCLEAR desfnjc^rk of an Infected atea, you have a
gcimt^ ti\ unlimited variation. You wHl need more thisn
ju^t f^$t r^fle^es to g^i thrqucjh iIil' multiple scr^^a^,
you'll ri€cd dt your powers of logic tool
A ir^aTveltDus bic'nd of ^rafeg|; and arcade,
CONTAMINATION puis vq<i in control of the
WORLD HEALTH CENTRE. Your ta^k ii^to identify
and tfradicdte dis*."^^^ throughout <he glob^ nnd save
ifi« u/orld's populatiofi. With a roiige of options
available from CORDON SANITAIRE to creating an
i>sS !>RODL CIS Ah ^ \VAI^ V :: ^ \ Ki 3M SELECTtD Bh ANCl ICS Or W.H, SMITH. JOHN MF-NZIH5. ROOTO AND ALL GOOD DE.\L£KS. IK
VOUK LOCi^l Kh I All i N !>( >iMV T HAVE A PARTICUL^K PS& GAMT IN STOCK. PLEASE ASK HIM TO ORDER IT. ALTERNATIVELY, AJU,
GAMES ARE AVAILAULC MAIL ORDER - TELEPHONE 02€a 667556 FOR DETAILS. FOR A FULL CATALOGUE DESCRIBING ALL Of OUR
PHOnuCTS™ SEND A S A.t . TO i PSS, flsa STONEY STANTO^ ROAD. COVCiVTKVr CV6 5DG
SECOND opimow
Bit^hTBjsh cicada gr-^phJ^s, knifdiconf
t^ontrols and rni iuUrfgumg teAk in^&
tiua a really ad±ctsve g&me, Y&u'U
oan bB iVfifl r/ng rfta sarB^tf, but
jtHtiiig ihos^ hi^fiy spArking^-bamh
onusiis wUJke^p you playing mia the
ro€^ small houzB. You 7i fire <?/ jr
ymiimdiy, IsuppQsm, bui you 'Uhaitw
i^^inpl&niy^fplsymg tim&hy (h&it.
£9t}INOJ£
11 a back to the nwtes for Mikro-Gen with
anolhei topical gsme. ihis time all about \h^
disposal or £adioacltre caiUsTers^ Tim game
ifl a colourhii exploration game, bat with c5
good dose of puzzles tod af<:a<ie action
thrown in. Eight caiiidterd Mve to 3m dis-
posed of ill the eighJ !e¥el» of thfe s^of oid
mine - s^d t^t's tougher ihaii trying to get
Waliy Week to go on a diet
TM3 noble ofid i9 achieved li&mg ^
spherical disposal droid, Ehe inatmatian?
3EQONII OPINION
Gt&ws Oil you, ihis an& doov. 7!t^
puMEbxi^^ buiit take^ s fAir old Mmount
ofhmMp&vmrJtiMf domg evAryihAhg
in ihB nght order. Th^ can^mitnei^
for upward thnistimk&^ €0ntr&I
MwicmRrd. and a ¥mdin^ ih^ aliens
tAkm nT^re luck ihAn judg&m&nt ai £nit
- bitt moitk At tbm gtmm wiUh^p i^
iio^ th6s& araa^ A bif oim good mi€
AW
and a lot of hard work. On ^a<^ of ilie eight
leTela the droid has to find a radioactive
tanifltor imd get rid of it down a dispo&a]
<:hute. then bnd a pajs io tMk& hinri to the
neia level. To complele these laBks h^ hag
to py^rcQms several obstacles and avoid
the menace of ihe aJian t:^roaluies ttial roam
Ihm mining complex. Each level must be
§2 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
!
ggmpleted before th^ r^cUoactive eamatei
fixplodei and eiidi £he game.
The droid that you conirol can be
moved around in any diiecttonr but con-
sumei fuel when it's thiusting upwaida. It
cm CB^xy on^ object at & time and lias Uie
vital fibilitf to shoot m&fauding aliens Fuel
and laser p<>weir have lo be replenished
from dine tp time Otherwise the c^aft wiU be
left wJithoMt uplift or defence. Control lb Ln
general £airly eaiy but ypu have to pay
con^tent ittention to movemeni and Quat's
very wearing.
The rooms in ilie mine are attractive
and colouifuOy drawn although some of
them ftr« quite bare, Thffire*? all sorti of
mituiig equipment that's bte^ left lying
around to brighten up the view, but you
Mvon't have much time to admire it because
the ^iens matedaUse on eveiy screen-
Th-ese are ^Uso colourfuUy designed and
after appe^ing start wMzzing ^oiin.d
screen, landomly boimcing off walls and
objects.
MAGNFTfC LIFT.' )Sft$ Hie droid up
o hjh^ Ixit won't let ymi Iravel
bock dowru
RJEL CAN: replenlUies h^i^L IF you
fun out Ifip droid coo't go up,
BATTftV: repJenfihe£ Hit drold's
later power.
The ahens can be destroyed with your
laser fire but after a few seconds they
reappear. Th* threat th«y pose \s a cenouf
on& because prolonged contact (about half
a second) wHl cause the droad t^ explode
and you to lose a hfe. You don't actually
bump into the aliens but pass through them.
80 that if your droid accidemaiJy moves
along ^e same path as that taken by ^^
alien it spells disaster - unless you havt^
very quicik leacitions and can alter direction
intimSr
This loss of life is a iouroe of an-
noyance beau^e it's very much a rtiatter of
luck a^ to whether an ahen takes the same
course as the droid, and there a^re only
three very precious lives. A better system
would have been for the aliens Eo gradualiy
drain the droid's energy, whi^ he could
then replace in the same majmer as fuel
and laser power.
The puOTles are Bsirly siraightforwajd
beq&u^e you can only carry one object at a
time. In most cased it's a chain reaction of
using one object to get at another. The
diKculty lies in performing the actions m
the right order, particukrly where teJe-
porters are concerned. You need a credil
(coin) to use a teleporter^ and there is only
a limited number of these, so that a wrong
move may cost you the game.
This mfikes a pleading departure from
Mikro-Gen's previous garnes but has iheix
haUmajk of excellenL graphics and tough
gameplay. The pusiile solving ia easy to g«t
into but completiiig the game is a tough
proposition because of the oonsiant throat
to your life. You'll keep plugging asroy
trying to gel that hii further and it*s very
rewarding to a<^eve success.
GREEN^ SCREEN VIEW
£jiaFe blight colotirfiiJ grspbics
&Gugh, and looks 0kMjr~ ^ km^ ms
you dota 'timow w^t jw 're mismng.
AW
W
^ Celoiitf ul ttcream* Mi4 lUeaa^
> Testing action for the foyatlck and fbe
bimin.
^ Nlpe featiures Uke Cb« ctedit di^penset
and magnetic lifts.
P- C^ood control over tbt dioid-
^ Easy to get into bat tough to cimcfc.
e
W
IH Ufe lass from alleas la SLnmoying,
*- One mistake can xum a f an:ie.
GRAFHCSP
S0NIC5I:
GRAB FACTOID r:
STAriMG POWER
A A HATWG
to^nd d» Tj,™d.n,™» AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1 986 63
TAU CETI: SPECIAL EDITION
cm. C14.3S disc, iorsiick with ktys oi kefS
This epic spajcd gAmfi i& now OUI In an
improved disc vefsioii, which Looks pra-
misizig sinc^ the cassette v^r^iQn was
Havcsd HI opi Apnl i»3»i^. Tliore'ft no real
change to the gamepiay bul th# present-
ation and detail withui the game h&a b&ett
CQinsiderably extoTLded.
TKg b€2i<? iaak lb the- som^ as dual of the
oaflaette version, namely to $iop a de&erted
pQanet's robot d^ence systems by ahuttiiig
dawn its main reactor. To do this you have
to coDect rods from cities on the planet and
put them together befofe inserting them
into the reactor core.
SECOND OFINTOK
Th& ohgin^ W3S^ great gsme, bur rhe
exirss here 0re k a wbole^ jww d^pth.
Jlte delay duiing^disk access can get
on your nerves^ bur ih^i s & small pjTC*
to pay. In return you get libraii&s (o
CQ!^stil(, tim&vsu!fs fuU ofgCfOdi^s, djrid
suicidal odds at the nastier outpcsis.
Well WQiih th& extra rajik
Til* dSjpJoy during
flicjhl hi ^&
^y^i^
The rods are found m roaeior siibst-
ations which can be docked with in yo\ir
'skunmer' spacecraft, Tlua Spends it$ nme
skimmiiig the planet autface torn dty to
city, blasting robot defences and brying to
stay aliire- There are other buildong* thst
yen can dock vrLth. iFLOluding a new ad-
dition In this yersion- the libraries.
Idbr^es ajre found m all dUeis and
contain timeTanlss which are cf>ened by
soh^g a pm^e. loside are various objects
that may help your nusxion like super
ini^sileB, ea±ca shields, radi4UOn siiits and a
single joinp driv*. Librtrifefi tan also pro-
vide plenty of u^erul inforinafion. Their data
banks can give details on many of ihe
feahtxes and bsickgxound to the gajne; an
identificadoiL chart helps you recognifie all
the planet leamres and a city map f ew^ais
the location of all the buildings^
The city map reveals another new f-ea-
tare on the game - the on^sts. These are
areas of ^ajoh city that can only be re-ached
using a Bingle jump driv^p md which con-
tain som« nasty surprises in the forni of
hordes of robots.
Other areas in which the game has
be&n improved are the graphics for the
inEeiiors of buildings, tho presentafiofL of
menu^ and instructions at [he start of the
game and additional buildings and featuraa
like volcanoes and more t obots.
The disc version ceitain^ improves a
good deal on tho ca^^^tte and m^tkes a
great game even better. Worth a look even
if you've got the cassette version already.
BW
W
^ Excellent graphics and mesa
handUng.
f^ Taugh combat action agaJiul even
R^ore cxaJt.
> Very dJfficnlt long tarm t^xk.
> Fnzzliiig ond strategy add something
extra.
^ Nice additional featurei like librariea
and outposts.
H
W
>^ Kot very iinpivisiY* Mimd,
GREEK SCMEEN VIEW
Ashefare, the inlTRT^d screen option
isliard to use, but otherwise tke
XW
CMPHTCS
31 '-I: WSKKKM
SONtDS
fw* M n r a i^'Tfia
GRAB FnCTH
^J4n#9OT
STAYING ?0'Atn
A A RATmC
:::^^imH
THEY SOLD A MILLION: 2
Tlie Hit Squad C9 9!i cass, £14 QB Aisc
has aai many nasty trap^ ior you to negob-
ate. N^ol only do you face plenty of tricky
Th^ Hit Squad know whc^n ti\ey're onto a
good thing so here's d\a second compil-
ation of bestsellers, thit tlma timing fiorn
Oc&an, US Gold. Ullimate and Psion. Onf?^
again it "a tremendous vaJue for money, but
it is more than a little disappointing tih&t
products "iikm this atb coming out when the
Amstrad maikel still Jiasn i got together a
^*arity product tor OB the Hook, Sofi Aid or
any oiiher worthy cAUAes,
The individua] rating for each game
may differ horn their origmal rating, re-
jecting tho improving standard of Amstrad
software ^noe they weie firsi reviewed.
Bruce Lee-85%
This martial aits a^nd platform game was
jrewiewed in Issue Two. where it got a Rava.
It involves the legendary kung-fu hero in a
20 screen b«ttle against an evil wizard, who
hazards, bill two vidoua oriental opponents
as well
The aore«t\^ ace oonnecled up m vari-
ous ways that reveal themsolvps a^s Bruce
collod^ m^gic lanterna. These remove
doDrs, open holes in The floorp reverse lifts
and so on to allow further progress. Some
hazards have to be avoided by good timing
and jumping. whii*5 the two adversaries,
Yamo and Ninja. have to be avoided or
fought.
If Bruce makes it all the way he has the
pleasure of seeing the wizard escplode.
64 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION Fir.i*^AAio
There ajc some very pietty screens and
plenty of ncn-stop ^cuon that siiU make thu?
an excelleni game.
SECOND OPINION
Once ^^m, a compil&uoTt. vfcl&^stcs
rescued from oblivicn by ihosG
awfully wealthy Hit Squad p&cp!e.
Good v^u& for mcmcy it msy b^t bm
origmal it isn 'L Ifya^ h^ven 't got 4ny
of th& gMm&s ^Jid dan *f jilin d £h^
spoTtinq slant, they're c&r^lnly worth
baying - but they are sho wing their
age.
AW
Match PoiEit-71%
A very tough tennis simulation that's harder
to beal thaji !van Lendl. You can play
agairiEt the computer or 3. hiucian opponent
on a 3D court, viewed from OJie end. The
computer plays ^ very good gaitte, against
wMch you"U fiecd many hours of piacljc^
before you c*n even Ihink of winiiiing.
A two player game is more Aui and
moT& competitive. The graphic are well
donep the players are wel] anii^iated as ihey
move around the court, but it is a sliglu
disadvaiiiago 10 bo af the far end Of the
comrf.
Match Day-81%
Another Ene sports simtilatiorL, this time set
on the foolb^lt field. It's played an a scrol
ling pitch with a goal at either end, on
which you can banl# a^ computer loam or
another player, either m on^off games 01 a
full cup competitio]:!.
Ii h^ ail the feamrcs you'd oxpect;
heading, throw-ins, goal kicks and comers,
and pSisnTy of options for chajnging colours.
match length and skill. Thft computer oprr-
nent isn't too hard to beat, bul it's bc^i
played as a two player game where excit-
ing contests can develop with plenty o(
passing, dribbling and ^^otlng. The
graphic clash when players overlap is iin-
tortunite but obviously doesn't affect the
gajTiepl&y.
Knight Love-86%
The riow agoing Ultimale clasRic still] st-^nds
up well to comparison wi!^ more recent
efforts. [IS graphics are v&ry colouritjsji by
today's standATdi but the pii2zle iolving
and gamepliiy have lost none of their addic-
tion aiid la^nng challenge. [I isn't quite so
iffipresBsve because of more recent games
like Eatmazi and Get Dext&r, but it would
stdl get a Eiave even today.
The game takes place in a 128 room
casde from which objecls have to be re-
covered by adl^tmig various pusles, and
then taken to a wizard k cauldron „ li*a a
verjr toitgih g.ime with plenty of hazards
and action. A grand old game thai is surviv-
ing the teat oi lime.
BW
N
W
^ Two grtAt sparts Btiniulatiofis.
^ One classic; arc^d^ Bdvantmre.
^ Ooe great combination of platfotm
and combat game.
> Great valne for money.
^ Ideal )7uy if you taaven^t got any of the
tildes.
B
t
W
P- Compilations dou^ speed the
production of more original titles.
^ We sbD don't have a conipiIatiDn for
charity for the Amstrad-
CLASSIC INVADERS
Bubble Bus. £2.39 cass, £9 35 disk, joystidc or
keys
ll'a hsid to believe I know, but this leaUy lA
a version of that grand daddy of all com-
puter games Space Invaders. Quite rtghdy
it's a budget title, but f get the sneakiiig
suspicion ihial there ^viU be a fmi niimber of
people keen to have a go at this old classic.
For those who have been Hving in a
Tibetan monastery for the la^t lew years
and don't know what JJiFSdej? la^ I'M give a
quick summary. You control a single shot
lasier base that can be «ioved Jeft and nght
at the bottom of the screen. Above you
appear a phalanx of aliens who ^hntt^e
acroas the »cr««n. m<oving dov«i and gett-
ing faster every time they hit the edge.
Ber^v^en CtiB two forces are three shields
that you can hide undat. Th* j^liens shoot at
you aj\d you slioot at the aiiena ~ they
alv?ays win but you've got to survive as
longaa possible.
SECOND OPINIO H
Amazing, isn 7 i!; you really wouldn Y
thJiik anyone wonid itava tho nerve 10
product ihis game. Ah nfell, human
nature never cea^&s to be miraculous
and unfeahomsble. Th^ g.imo? Well,
it's a reasonable version stick almost
But ihat's no 0xciis0.
AW
If you destroy one wave another
nuktenoliftes. low^r and faster than belore.
The only other thing thai appeajs is a
>*'i«s».
*♦♦
B% gk^
Rpwj of aliens i\j^-
wilting to be
flpacoship !har whiizea across the top of the
screen and can be shot for a bonus srom.
Thara aU there is to at but even today it
will still get the adrenalin pumping and
needs good reflexes. The graphics ate
much more colouiful than the original with
some nice aliens and escpLoAions. There are
also :fiomo jolly Ultlc musiCtil bursts thio'^'ro
m and a high score table thai you ciin save
for posterity. No ptiaes at all for origin^ity.
but ii you re looking for nostalgia or a
claseic, mindless blast then you might want
to shell out the few pennies for it.
BW
Cll£EN£C]t£Elf
AW
W
^ Nice noslaJgia Mp.
*- A very colourful and fa*t venion.
^ Baan't lost much of its addictivcness
ovet the ycar^.
W
1^ App^Uingly unotiginal,
»- The rwo^ rfslndless of games,
^ Even £3 seem^ a hit much.
GRAPHICS
44%
53%
mmm
SDNSCS
GRAB FACTOR
SI'/.
I&O/
STATING rOWEfl
4S%
A A AATING
TOADRUNNER
AriDlnsoft, E8-9S ciis, iovsti^ Dt fc^ys
It^s haid to behev@ it from the title but this is
an arcado ^dv^nrure and not a version ol
Fro<f0er. It may seem odd thai the rftain
charactoip pbycd by you, ia a load, but
then it aeems only tiahiral when you're
trying to rescue a princes Peihaps he HI
turn into a prince at the end - don't you )ii;St
love a h^ppy ending.
The game i? s^t in a funny sort of
landscape ^ed with odd looking plants,
weird monsiers and strange btrilding 9truo^
luies The toad has to *»lljfie' (a horrible
sound effect] his way arotmd the screen,
with his buB^ous belly bounong up and
down. To Stan with the g^ne area is cruiie
hmited - 10 escape inio a wider arena
you've got to cfack some veiy lough
problems-
To^d has four pockels (odd things for
1J1 amphibian to have} In which he can
cirry the mar';y objects found in (ho game.
An object m the fourth pocket can b© used
under the nght circumstances - for mstanoe
an a^e can be waved around to try to hit
something.
On each screen a bug appeixS which
drains old toady's energy when it touches
him. Other screens have larger monsters
which may also drain his energy but ^e
more likely to kill him outright J they rim
into ham wMlc following a movftineni par-
torn. These patterns usually guard «i screen
AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 65
exit. BO the momt^f lias lo ba ramovsd
befcie yau can get through.
Gating rid qI monstorB ig a major part
of ^16 game imd to do it you need to h^v^
(he lighr object. An ajce obvloualy comes in
hmdy ~ youi: oiUy probJem ii finding out
which nrtonsters to use it on. Tri^ and error
Ib whfli'a nftedfid nsosl of the time and ttis
Will CQPt you an awful lot ol livea and gamt^i?
4aily on.
SECONB OPimON
Mevoltmg- graphics and wriefch^
50UJid ojjg/rr to b^ e-npugh far Riiy
game, but th^f gajnepJdy i?ed/? them
t&ih. The uae of objects is Ii^rffely
irrartona/. and them tripi^ o:infs are
crimmAUy smpid. If you reai/y ivoriSr^f
it, dieie ismore fo this gsme than
m00m eft* eye - but nowhere near
enougli i^b0 vtrortb ihe effort.
KW
Another eource of dealih ^nd frustration
«t the start are the 'dipJe exits". This is
whoio there are thre^ parftilet exits from a
screen btii two resuli in the end of thm
gorti^. A acenery featuxa indicaie'fl which Lb
the lofe rouiep but this has to be Jeamt by
trial and error, isn't ^andaid for different
aE;re«n« and wiU dnve you up the wall until
you've worked it out.
A laler fruatiation is a thief who ap-
pears on i^#en after a wMla and maSici-
oufily sr>^aps objects around irom looations
you have visited. Once you've worked out
hiB behaviour he shouldn't be too tough to
cope with though.
The game's main pioblem is that to
itan with there are (oo many difficult pro-
blems- There aic the tnpLe exits, many
deaths and restarted gmfies through trial
ai^ ^rror, and some obscure pusiLas thai
nfi«d ntany ftUStxating games to crack. A
much mofe Friendly opening would hAve
been appreciated because there's quite a
good -gaiiie size and many thmga fo do.
The game also auflers from annoying
practical problems In pLckmg up objecis,
using thom, and in movement, which fur-
rier damage first impressions, llie
graphics are quite pleasans. feamring some
nicely drawn monsters, alLhough many toe-
atjons look <n^te bare. The sound is disap-
pointing mth the incessant squelcfunq
noise of the toad guaranteed ta get on your
nerves. A game that haa quite a few tough
problema and plenty to k^^ep you going,
but that will probably haFc- loit it? audjeitce
long before they get to most of them.
BW
OREEH SCREEN TICW
/ £ftoagh^ this one might /oolf oi»x M
grstfUp but I was wrong. It's horrid,
snd3iomeJeaturesarequiti^€iiSicii}fi0
wee.
MM
GOOD
N E W
S
^ fflmnj loeaticmB and «bj0ct» to flnd^
^ Soiae tdugh problems to work oat.
BAD
NEW
s
^ Triple exiis are infuriatiAt at Ant ajid
lakfl Bome whil» to wark out.
> Piekjng up objecrtv can be difflcnlt
¥- One ttii stake can end a game ~ very
annoying.
P- Rellofi mostly on trial and arror at
fif St, giving a bad first impression.
GHAPHICS
SOWfCS
GMS FACTdA
A A RATING
4fl%
IflVo
30V*j
ROGK'N WRESTLE
Vie Ml QUITS HQiise, t%% tn^%. joystick or kuy^
There *e cartaiiUy plenty of wrestle in this
latest in the lin© of combat games, but
theie's abioLutely no rock at ajl. The wres-
tling is very different from previous at-
tempts at comb^i games bocauso it has a
large varioty of moves and takes place in
SD. Those aren'E just advertising claims to
liype the game, but whethei they make a
good game is another matter.
S£ CO Nl> OPINION
If fou tind the g^me cailusmg ^t fust
don't worry ~ it jaw *fju^t you^ This one
realty takes some practice, and that 3D
jum mak^ thmgi? wor^e. Whether it's
worth ail that effort is anaiher matter.
Beat the computer opponents ortce,
mnd! doubt you 'It wan/ tQ play ihc
Th0 action all takes place m one wrcs^
iiing ring Wliere you can either take on the
world's top ten wrestlers as Gorgeous
Greg» or you can battle with another player
to see ttf ho can inflict ths niost bniises The^
aim is fairly simple to pm your opponent
to the canvas fox a -pount of three. Achieving
it is a lot tougher because ^ere are over 20
moves thai can be performed and the
compuier opponents are quite aldtful in
then useof ihem
Against the computer you have to
baitte past the 10 opponents, most of whom
are insuiung racial ^toreorypc!^ in ihe same
vein as those in Frajik Bnuto 's Boxing. Each
one has to be pinned to the Ooor within a
three minute time limit without letting them
pin you. Qiherwise! you lose the bout- A win
takei you on to face a new opponent who is
more skilful and powerful until finally you
challenge the world champion.
The screen shows the ring with a
crowd around it, and at the bottom of the
screen are strength gauges for the two
wt^tlem^^ Thes^ don't deterimne the resuli
of a bout but they do affect the wrestler's
ability and recovery in some moves
Most tussles aie opened with a bit of
solte ruing up by both men using lacks, lilced
knees and forearm jolts. The next step is for
one of the fighters to grab the other, and
from then on there are irtaiiy dstferent
moves that can be j^erformed. Most of the$e
depend on whether you grab the man from
the front, side or back, and at lirst can be
diffJcuh to string together fluccessfuUy .
The conhiffling thing about most of the
! moves is the 3D nature of the game. Each
move is performed by pushilig the joystick
or a key in a panicutar direetion. The
problem IS that the directions change as the
wrestter rurns around the ring, and you
need lo pause in certain circumstances to
work out exactly where you need so move
thq joystick n^xt- Ptaciice brings more
faimliarity, but you'll ne«d pletnty before
bemg fully skilled.
When your opponent is on the floor he
can bo pnmod down- If he has enough
strength he may be able to throw you off^
this depends on how much strength he has
left. Many of the moves may get the man on
the floor but theloltow up is always crucial.
There ai^ too many moves for us to teU
you aJ^^oul all ot them but amongst the more
^spectacular are the turnbuckle Oy. in which
you leap off the ring posts: the pile driver,
m which you drop youi opponent head first
on the t^nVM: and the aeroplane spm, m
which you whiz2 your opponent around
before sJamming him to the floor
The grapfucs are very well worked to
produce the 3D effect, but it's o^en difficult
lo teU exactly what's going on. Not only is
there a lack of rock but what sound there is
IS hopeless. The fight action has a fair bit ol
depth, with some interesting manoeuvres
bemg possibLe after iOm« practice. Thefie
are mosl fun with th^ two player option
though p because (he computer opponents
caTt be beaien in a fairly predictable man-
ner ^ It's certainly a very clever and de-
tailed production but lacks really gripping
gameplay and exdlement,
BW
W
^ Tne 3D adUon tn Uie viiig-
> Large variety of moves.
P- Impressive aniictatien for sortie
moves.
9
W
^ Computer opponents are fatrlr
predictable.
>• Virtually no sound at all, never mind
any rock.
^ Gameplay may be clevar and dfltail#d
bal it isn't very exciting.
CRTEN scRjrcK View
Perf&ctly visible, and none ol^ose
gariah costujnm either.
JIW
GRAPHICS
SONIC S
CMB FACTOR
STAVING POWfll
AflftATHiC
62 7d
&%
66 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
OF THE PEOPLE
All of t}t« regulars arfi back again thh month with
messrs Master$ori, O'Conn^llp Hughes and Connellr
monopolising thd posfbag again. They are^ hogging fh«
limelight wjfh their brickfaals and bouquets. However
thora ore pbniy rripre of you with conittthing to say -
you can't po»ibly agre^ with us oil the tiitie.
Batman ond Bounder both coine in For co nil dur-
able praise but the dynamic duo from Sid cup realty
lock it to Uf over Monty on th& Run- If you want to got
in on the act then don't delay, send u$ your view» on
q\\ the tatost games you can got your handi on. Alt
arguments will be settled in a gentlemanly mqnner
with pbtols at dawn (but I warn you^ Bob it a meari
frhat^). Send your comments on the back of o postcord
or stuck down envelope to: l^pic^ of the Pmopfm,
Amstrad Atli&i^, The Old Barn, Somerton, Somenet
TAItSAK
BOUNPiR
Gremlin Gr«ipliics
AA Rating 92%
B^iUianr" Tlsia ts ea*ily ihe most
SctdJCtivQ g^mi? I"v€? pb]red m a
loiig Arliile. The gameplay m
highly oiigiiiAl ^un4 the gr^phic^
Are esceOeiii. If 7011 aie even
remotely intereirted in arcade
games buy this!L
QmjTf HugheH, Cianleigh
This WBfl wgM worth the ac-
colade ol Mastergaine. Bob
Wade certain]/ loiowa ft gieilt
game when he seea one. The
graphics are absolutely bnliLanC
and the tune may eiren make the
lop 30 Bui its jtiBf ihe ahe«r
addiqtivoneas thai makes the
game great. It is pure torture
and you ju*t keep coming back
for more. Once you ^tait
playing yoii won't be able to
stop. This game ia bound lor
keep you up to the small houis
of the morning (Sorry).
Rlcbanl CoiuivUT] Cmfliia
ROCK'N WRESTLE
Melbourne House
A A ftotlns 58%
Thja fotlow up to W^y of the
^eplodmg Fist 13 a good attempt
4t4 WF^e^Oing vimulaiion, but not
up to the standard set by
programs like Frst and Yis At
Kung fu. Nevertheless it you
enjoy 'beat-em-ups" it's well
worth a look-
GvEry Hnghax, CimnJftf § h
To siarl off with this game is
WTO(ngly titled. It should be
called Wr^^rJ^. because there is
no lock As (or the leai of the
game, the graphijcs. are aJrtghl
and animation m very good.
GamepLay td also r«aJonable.
AU in all a good gam« that lacks
some ROCK.
Stella O'C^ttttcU* Sidicup
MOMTV ON THE RUN
Gremlin Graphics
AA Rating 65%
This hs one game where I must
disagree with Bob Wade. Of
course the music IS mcredibJe*
bui it i5 not ju^ another pLatfofm
game. Has JSW got teleporterSi
a ]et pack and a CS? I don't think
so. I suspecE Bob didn'l get very
fax into ttie game? In short this
game is fantastic^
Simon O'ConnelL, Sidcup
The fiist thing that hits you
a)>out this gajne is the pbena-
menai music by Rob Hubbard.
Will it be t>eti«fed? Apart from
thai thg gameplay is alio excell-
ent. 1 can't see why AA didn'l
like it.
Emmet MasterAOiLp Sldcup
COMMANDO
Elite
AA Roting 76%
After playing this on a Speclriim
1 was in no way duappointed
with this version. It h%E good
graphics, great scroUmg, great
music and very tougli gaineplay
that make this a must for every
shoot-em-up fan. My onliy gtoan
is frustration. You can lose all
your lives in just OEte spot.
OveraJJ a great game,
MariK Baton, Pools
TTus is a good rcndinon of the
arcade game with gOOCt scrol-
ling, graplucs. gamep^B^y and
sound. The worst thing about it
IB thi^t when you run across Hv^
omway (he game los^s a lot of
Bp6^. Overall an excellent
shoot-pm-up.
Emm^t MaAteraoiLi Sldcnp
Forget J?aMl>o, forget WDWU-
buy Comiudndo. U Ul absolutely
iianiliant. The graphics are far
superior lo any 04her game of
this kind and puts them to
shame. Your character is a real
mean piece of *vork who prides
his ability m murdcrmg hordes
of enemy scum. He is weU
quipped for the job with a
mean gun and grenades too.
The goiind is wonderful with a
really almoaphenc tune. The
game is exceptionally tough as
your man $oems to be taking on
the Whole of Europe, bul he's
more than man enough to cope
with It and relum a glonous
hero.
RiclUfd CoELiaelly» Crofton
WINTER GAMES
US Gold/Epyx
AA Rating 90%
This ts most de^niteSy the best
sports simulation to grace ihe
Amstiad's screen. The events
^IQ oU |?rillJani and require skill
Tuthei *h*li severe waggling.
The baokdrop scenery is good
enough lo go on a poatoard and
thie actual aimnation i& brilliant
too. For those wtio fancy them-
selves as TorviU and Dean there
is skating, those who prefer the
dangerous sports have tki-
jumping, hot dog and bobsled,
while for thoso who just want to
get knackered there's speed
Skating and the killer biathlon
My only moan is that the ca^-
«tt0 loading i^ annoying, so do
you»elf a favour and beg, bor-
row or steal a dijc drivf? and
treat yourself lo a great game.
STARQUAKE
Bubble Bus
AA Rating 80%
Get this garnet U has fabulous
music and sound offocis, amaz-
ing graphics and great game-
play. It i^ very addictive and
well worth £8.95. f would will-
ingly sell my Amstrad to buy
this game! Il is a<?e.
Slxnen Cniilefotilt JEeailwoatli
BATMAN
Ocean
AA Rating 93%
This game looks Like ajwther
yitimjte cLone, but thai u aj$ im
as the similarities go. EtmiajT is
eroremely easy to get into and
you'U keep conung back Ipi
more. Colour is used briUianlly.
so much betiejr^ftu a one or
two oolouj UlttMM gmft. The
tune loo 13 a gOOd F^Klitiori Ol
the Batman theme.
Although the game i* very
easy to gel into dOm,^ Of the
puzzles are really clev«r. but
wiilb a little ejrpeTimenialion you
should be able lo start to save
Gotham City. I mitsi admit t
haven't goi very far but ['m
ccnamly gomg to fc^^p on
trying. It's that son of gam<i. a
real challenge. 1 do have one
quibble - whe re ' s Robin?
U<^l«ni Conneiny, Croflon
This game really is good. Great
graphics m great colour ajid
marveUous animabon. The
gameplay is alio great - just the
righl d Iff lenity. The only ihmg
wrong is the totally naff mu3ic.
Ocean don'l seem lo be able to
write music eg NOMAD, Sambo
and now BstntAn.
Simon O'Ccmiieli, Sidcnp
voF * gr«r Bnn.^ i^Mi^^'™ AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 61
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Alligata Softv^are Ltd. 1 Orange Street Sheffield SI 4DW, Tel: (0742) 75579fi
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|¥/jySr nejmie! F^Umm^ pf the Pmth are p^sitivdy spoilt
\f&t dmkm dm mmmtk ms Iftr Cmf^ted Crusmder takes ualue
|/br Mwniy m hm thtm^^ mmd brings jf^u netc^i^ of six new p;J
Uiiffn. Umi 9, fbthinl CRl - fkty're all fluffing ^ut p
I their fomfh^n mui dnpetw t ^ tn/tng to attr&ct your h^d-
\emntd oisA, » IvMnef As Sjpring madness spurs thei
liwftximre ha$effs Mm mMm^ u^tdf game ^hauU tfou got
fi^r? fust ^f btto fSHT pmk^ ^nd follow the math iDiih\
ike md. the 5fa# o^ ^ NmUmml Health spets...
.^Ij^
PRICE OF MAGIK
Level 9 CompQaxigp H J5 caw
YessET, the Pr.ce ls nght. Pdgs. Here be ihe la teat from Level 9,
feamnng for the second tune theix n^w adventure system but
with added sparkle a:id extra features, \C% top of the list this
ruor.m ut teims of s:2«. or,g-j:.a::rsr. and ehatt-toppirig challenge.
Just IT case 7*^" iiadr't twigged. Level 9 aie now boastmg
1000 word vccah-ilaries or aii thesr new releases, ihanbs to
theii ne^ corr-preasiDr. rr.ethods [givuig over SO per cent
reduction r. TT-% p^rs^rs are iiso far more effective, allowing
mptits like Taie all except the boozlbtig^ ^e byms, and the
bantam, ihen go rcnh and kfll the siug\ The graphics and text
nsw prinl 3iuinlta--cou3ly too. so you can interrupt the picture-
drawtng so move er, to another location without having to hang
around while she *oene enfolds.
The efiectrffliMe imnovations. already featured in Woim m
Paradise, m tso make Sm ^amss vastly easier and far less tiring
to play H you s:t at &€ screen for hours on end. In addition, with
POM. Level 9 have inuoduced three moxe significant
develgpmer.ti.
The trsi r^^o involve extra commands, which are most
helpful JO *e b^leag^ared P:lgnm. RAM SAVE and RAM
HESTORE will Mve yosix gair.e to meisxory instantly, so fiiat you
can instandy lestoire to a previous position. However I was
disappointed to fijajd suT *^t they would not work once you d
died^ 30 saving to tape le stIl] recommended every now and
then. The OOPS comma- d ^r^ables you to go back one move^
useful if you've just regretted joining battle with a giant slug.
Aga^F^. yo^ can : tise it to get out of lemiinal situations.
The fcnal new development in POM iJ the introduction of
independem ^.araeters . T^ese have been around the adven-
'>«««.
"m
«
w
?^
u
^ ■
^'^^^
'V.'^H^^^v:
turing scene for quite some time now, ever since they firs!
really gripped the punter's imagination in The Hobbit In some
g^unes. for example Suspecthj Iniocom, the interactive eharac-
tex has become a whole game in itself, but thiA requires large
amounts of memory or disc storage, lo on tape-based games
the characters are necessarily rather linuted.
to POM there are various baddiea to contend with. Some
ju^t attack you malevolently, while others can be communicated
with if you tiave the right questions or commands to give.
Commands aie given simply by prefixing your input with the
name of the creature, followed by a comma - e.g. WEREWOLF,
EAT BREAKFAST. Quote marks axe not required.
Sc there you have the raw bones of the program. The actual
plot is a sequel to the veiy popular game Red Moon, which got
the "Adventure of the Year' award Ia*t year. Level B have
always seemed more at home in the world of magik than the
world of hi-tech and the Pilg is glad to see them concentrating
on this area once again. In POM the Red Moon crystal is
contiolled by Myglar, who is using it to supplement his own life-
energy rather than for the good of the people. Your task is to
supplant Myglar and re-establish (he benign influence of the
crystal.
As plots go, this one isn't the most original of Level 9's
efforts. However, the game itself is somewhat different in being
almost exclusively about magik. Most of the objects in the
7i^i^*ami«'f t^iii^^d AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 19B6 II
^dv^mure are fairly easy io find, hux acluaiiy uBing them isn'l a
doddle by any means. There are 18 spetk thAf f^^ wil] ha'n to
m^ter in order to onmii Mygkr and at the b^ inning of the
game you dom^t e^en know how to ca«l ^ spelt, lei iticme where
to Ikid one ^r what to use it for.
However, after much eiploration of the House of the Red
Moon, in who&e echoing rooms the advenf^e tajces place, you
SE ABASE DELTA
FiTel»z^U.9>i
■p^ ^ '- ^ -' ...^.
_^__ ^ ,i~J ■
M-: — ^=.=..=r:===
*.>rt , up w^ 1™ t1 ^ L o a w in «
ii a doar^ Vou c^ii s«^
to #^ «4i^ ' d.r 1 we
An*l i «
iiegin to ixncovex meaningful inscriptions that will enable you to
Commence your magikiil cateei. M03t SpeUs t^e ihe form of
brief words that are inscribed in hidden placias, and all require
an object to act as a 'focus' for the spell before it will work.
TTie presence of magxk or inagikal objsct^ is indicated in
the program with the massage 'Your sanity is shaken'. This
refers to tho title of the program, which derives from P&te
Austin's belief that, in reality, magikai expani3e can only
increase at the pnce of one's sanity. You start Ihe game with a
^sanity rating of 100 per C€snt and steadily sink deeper and
deeper into menial confusion m your prowess^ a^ a itiagician
grows.
You also grow older d^-ing tha gam« fair mote lapidly than
any doctoi would ^eoomDHondH You oan avoid sinking into youj
grave before your time by touching a certain object, but Til
Ifeavfe it up to you to find out whieii orte. Age isn't your only
probtem either. Tlie program gives yon a stamina rating and
this receives a severe beating every time you indulge in
combat wiih a lattlitLg skaL^ion. qlBJit slug, or whatever happens
to b^ blocking your palh.
There tkT& over two hundred loc^itianB^ aU with graphics.
The graphics aien t much cop Vm afraid, but perhaps this is lust
a matter of personal taate. Certainly tha Pilg has never made a
$murBt of M^ disUke of L«vel 9's graphical style, but cihers are
free to disagree. I find it rather lacking in dehnition and in POM
1 even felt that soma of tha pictures were misleading One» for
example, clearly shows a stairway leading down when there is
in fact not one present in that locahon.
Howover, this game seems certain to keep even the most
astute Pilgrims busy for quite some time. I plugged away for
seveiaJ hours and still hadn't uncovered more than hali the
locahon^, and ihe use of magik is a hafd one to crack - V^m
currently goi only three ol the eighteen spells under my belt
The game definitely haa i diHerent Oavour to that ol moat
previous level 9 releases because of the independent charao-
lers. For the moBt part th^y axhibil satisfyingly varied actiona"
which give a greater iU^idon of reality. However p (hey do affect
the style of the game you*ll find that the mos! tricky puaales
tend to centre around tiow lo deal with people or animals. The
locations and objects aren't all thai hard to find, but gaining
access to rhein is difficult, AH this makes for a slightly pvew style
of ad^^nture from a compsny we have alt come to admire. It will
leave you £9.95 poorer, but a ticher Pflgrim in all other
ra»p«ct9.
yV^ now descend to Hm Tttry depOs d die ociean. where we
find the rock bottotn price tmvg^ of £1,99 fioin Firebird. DonH
be put ofi by price however, my telkmr Ffl^;, for this is no
flatfish ' if s a gneat bttle wii^flcr ttat wiU gne many a tuUp^
priced game a good run for iis moi^ey.
Seabaee Doha is a s^equel to SgjBank (already review&d by
Ihe Pilg) bM you don't nieed any Eamiliadty with the ear tier
program to enfoy ii as m^d^ am t did- It's a QuiEed ^ SEbiStraled
game thai boasts some excellent graphics, a reasonable
vocabulary, som^ tridky but i»dinirably logical pms^^^g, ^nd one
or two mgenious touches.
Se4t»se Delia is the underwater heafdquariErs qf a gang of
baddies who hAt^ ju^ siif^mmb^ io soine nameleas disease ,
leaving you with an (almost) fre« inn d the base. Th^'ve also
left you with the leen^-wefisvy probieiii of a nu^fiar warhead
to diapo^ oL and or course, tt^ problem of escape afterwords.
The base ic boili around a muxiber of different sub&tations
joined by a mim-txain network. Yoq hop mio a vehicle, mserl
your security card, and whi;^ oS to ttie nni station. AH ttus is
very weU flone iwng The OmB, with sood eSects and dramatic
pauses^ fhfmgh at limes ttie pames ttmeatcned to slip ^om
dmm^ inio lodium - a not unoommon Qiull cfiar^cleilfftlC,
Th^re aren'l that majiy locanons, tmi tlir:n you don't expect
all that many for £1.99. There ane howevi^r a reasonably
number of puzzles enough Io keep yoti busy ftif a day Or two
at least dependmg on your powers of mtuhion. The graphics
arci excellent though they tend to redraw rather too Arequenlif^
for examiple whenever you uncover 4 iwp object by searching
a room. This holds things up a bd, bm is eirttrelf forgiveable
because the picmres draw quickly ^ ^tvd are an added banu$
given th^ir quality and th^ ^juj^'s price.
S&AbA^ De^m isnt going in ^^^p you gotkng lor anything
like as long as a g aett ft Kko Fiit^v? of M^gik^ trai then it'p in an
enlirely different leagoB - «d in the budget league it comes out
^ery near &m lop-
ROBIN or SKERLOCS
Ln this inimitable spod, iot>in fi^^ hinsseV cmifronted with a
dead Doclor Wa|;$4:m, a cb^tity-bdled Vbi^m, and Hum the
Htinter gona haywire in ttie FVic^d Sguinel Bar. There is abo an
e?fploding Friar Gorbache*nik, a railway f^twork ihal bears
uneasy r«^semblance Io the one in Sheilock^ and a series of
Sherwood Forest graptua Oiai kiofe depr^essxEigly, and oten
hilariou^Ly , fsmiliar.
Oil s^H^m to tw nakiiig a nam^ lor ArbmIvm wUh
exceU^U saline^ advimtnrei ai Ae nune^ They'K Mken on
Sf Brid^ (see btiow) with iteu Vciy Big Cire- Adwmtfurey
th^y^vt assaulted la wiih Bojf^ d/ die JBoif^ bkI »ow th^-y're
sotting us sleuthing in Sluffwood FonesL For Aose of you who
fin)07 4 good laugh, im g^me a^tmm mak nir n«ar the top in
72 JULY !986 AMSTRAD ACTION n«.ih»p^iim««*wi9T
For s O^iilled gairta it's al$o apusiially-larg^, Th* p J Ingram
h^s beait. gplit ixitc three parts, giving y^u a healtliy. number oi
locations to expiore. You can movft between any of the parts at
p^._ will, lliough this entails saving a string of g-sirse data to tape lor
use in the next section each hme.
What iriiiitcs iJ-iO game 50 amiising is the way elementjs of
both Robin of Sherwood fan overrated ganie if ever there wa.3
one) and 5ijer/ocJc have been twisted into ore tdiolic scenario.
Waiwlering through Sherwood toroat it oomes aa someihing of a
shock to stumble across a British R^i'^ ticket office, but taking a
trip tp Hudderafteld is every bit as exciting and chaUenging as it
was in ihe origin a] Melboiirnc House pTOgram. You cAn also
visil the converJ, Hum's shed (one oi many), the Smurph'g
village, artd *! Iclt^q number of othor -n quarry absurd locationa.
There are also some ingerjous mrmicklngs of other fea-
tuTOS of this program'* i^uppoacdly more illustriOLi* fotbear^.
The 'Talk lo' feature of ShBricck, which yoa u&ed to question
suspects, has bo en oxccllorilly OtiiH^d into the game with often
hilarious results. First you t^e Talk lo (nam€ of person) and
then proceed with your questions. In fiict, for a Ouilli^d game.
the pars^ir appears extra ordinarily flexible and the vocabulary
doi^sn t let you dovvn a$ often as you might eacpect.
So if you fancy a game written by the authors of Sored ofrhe
Rings with the ajd of an elephant guj^ and an aniculaied lorry'.
that feirures lamps sioiart from the Notiingham HoUday tnn, the
sudden falling of day and night, and a misbehaving H.T. Hunter,
then this it loi you, my leViOW Pdgs, Your Cowled Crusader has
a reputation for being a bit hard to please whan it comas to
comic adveritdres, but here we undoubtedly have a game that is
both consiBtenl in its own illogioal w;5y and genuinely funny.
THE LOST PHIRIOVS - Part 2
Vidipix, £K.SO CMS
PersiBteni readers of th^ Pilg may remember a couple of
months back a review of the first part of thia trilogy from
Vidipix. It didn't get first-class ratings because 1 felt that it was
saiher too tJaay, and that the pua^sless thomselv&s ware^ slightly
illogical.
Well. Vidlpix have got the guti to persevere, which th^y'va
demonatrated by sending m& the second game in the series. Im
glad EC «y that the Pilg found it quite an Improvement on Part
bn^.
In this new game you find yourself on earth, and must
secure the necessary materials to build yourself a spsce-ship in
which you can proceed with the rest of your mission. In case
you missed the last review, tfus entails the salvage of a losi
sp^c^ship called the Fhirious, believed to have been carrying
a valuable cargo.
PhMouA l& a Quilled game without graphics. 1 was mteres-
ted to see ihal the authors intend to produce the third p^rt of the
series usiing GAC, wh:ch is perhaps just as well because 1 don't
feel that they have really squeezed the best out of The OuiJJ in
this case. Games Jike Sored of ihn Rm^ really demorutrate the
potential of Gilsoti's utiliiT, but PhJnoas belongs to the rather
iarget category of pick^up'n' puzzle solving adventuies. P%^
This part of the irliogy i^ called The Placets because - ■ '
surprise - it (eaiur^a Saturn, NepUme* and othei members ofth^
Solar System. You can irantporl from or.e pl^n«^t to another by
saying the correct ccMsrdinat&s in the right place - both <k \.
which you have lo detiarmiLn4a yourself .
There'^ oeriainly a lot more lo do ^n this game than in Its
predecessor, which Vidipis (ell me was meanl to be a 'begin-
ners adventure'. There are just over 70 local ions and a [though
there are no graphic^ th^ atEnosphere is rttainlamed to a
credible degree.
There are still. I feel^ ceriam weaJc points ixt the programm-
ing. For eicample. there's a robot who will carry heavy items for
you. but you can't corrunriunicaxe with if. In order to us^ it. you
just pick the robot up (difficult i would have thovight^ iiniess
you're po^sesaod of superhuman strength} and from then on
you can mov<^ ^normou^ lo^da. Similarly , there's a dooir in one
r<:w:>m+ clearly stated as being to the ea:&( of you. ihat you can t
enter wiihour a ceriain object. However, even carrying the
object you have to GO DOOE to pass through, raiher than go E
or OPEN it. both of which you mighi reasonably exped. but
neither of which you can do* Solving little problems like this
taJces rather a lot of time, and sometimes guessing the correct
solution hjC% enough - you hav« to grapple with the parser as
well.
My other criticism is thai not enough of die objects yield
further descnptions when EXAMINED. In one casie this is critic^
there's a reception pad in the first location, but examining if
reveals nothing about it. In (acl. it's the sort of pad you have to
write on - a very difficult conclusion to reach without a hint
sheet.
7Vi^ Pl^nBis costs £2.50 from Vldipiif at IZS Occupation
Road. Corby, Norlhanis, AW/ 7 lEG It's not the best valuie
budget release around, but it's an improvement on its prada-
cessor and I hope that Part Three shows a similar advance m
style and techniquee.
THE VERY BIG GAVE ADVENTURE
CRL,£7.95 cass
The Pilg's first leaciion on seeing this release was it's been
done before'. You se«, it's such an obvious idea once you think
of It: to parody the Great Ongtnal itself. Bui the fact is that no-
one hris ever done n before! So full marks to St Brides for
trampkng over another of our sacred cows, and thank you to
CRL for putting it before the public.
The Very Big C^ve Adventure La actually a very serious
academic look at the CoIossaI Cave Adv&nfure, first pro-
grammed by Crowther and Woods usmg 170K of Fortran code
on a mainframe computer. The game has already be^n the
subject of much iit^eptlv study by m«ny adventurers, bur now
St Brides have taken the ingenious step of actucUly piovldmg
you with a guide to ihe caves, Trixie Trinian, who tak<^s you by
the hand and leads you through the adventure,
Trisrie certainly knows her stuff. She lakes you first to the
linle brick building by the stream, where you find yoiir wellies,
Tt.<.p^m^wMxn^w^ AMSTEAD ACTION JULY 1986 13
►
k^ys, and other asserted items for the forthcoming [ouxney. If
you try to carry too much, she politely makes this clear to you
('You're carrying too much already, wimp') and she is of great
help with the bull that appe^^r^ to be reluctanl to let you down
into the oaves,
Certain of the underground cave ma iiave notj in the Pilg's
opinion, been given the diiing they deserve, but St Brides have
changed aU that. The Space Invader Room, for e^aLmple, is
given a new and definitive tieamient - most adventurers will
never have seen it before, but here £t is in horrible technicolour
- you can move left, right, and fire.
At its worst The Very Biff Cave Adventure is so bad it's
funny j and at ita best it's hysterical. It*s certainly worth every
penny of £7.95. The graphics are esceUent and the text
descriptions are almost up to the standard of the original, I'll
leave you with this brief extract from the beginning of the game,
where the bull won't let you pass: ''Are you still there?" roars
the bull guarding the gully. "No", you reply ^ whereupon he lets
you through because, you see, he's GULLY-BULL,
QOR
Maitdale Ltd, price TBA
And now for the last in this monlh'a selection of iLOuveau^E
gamettes. QOR is from Maltdale Ltd, a company who I must
confess ] haven't come across before. QOR is their firsi game,
written lising GAG and launched at the June Axnstrad show.
QOR features one Joe Steam who has been assigned
theperilous taks of penetrating the planet of the tttle and
checking out a vast computer complex (hat (he authorities
suspect is being used for hostile purposes. Joe is smuggled
aboard a ship m disguise and must keep a low profile before
stealing a ship himself to invetigate the situation.
This was a frustrating game because much of if was truly
original in presentation. The authox, Steve Bakex^ has come up
with a number of imaginative terms, phi^ases, and objects to
give the impression of someone living in the 2 Ist century. The
graphics are also, occasionally, excellent but the oveTall im-
pression of the game is one of extreme unevenness. One
moment I was impressed by an imaginative turn ol phrase or
pretty picture , the next 1 was let down by some appalling
spelling-mistake, or a tattily designed screen.
There are also other rather more serious criticisms. The
game features a reasonable number of locations, of which
almost all are illustrated, but there aren't a huge mmiber of
objects and those that axe thexe ofren yield httle iiifoixRation
when examined. Giving objects even a brief message of
description helps to keep the atmosphere going in a game and
avoid a feeling of fm^tration, w^hich thi3 g^ame eventually f^ils to
do away with.
At the time of writing Maltdale hadn't Cised a pxice for the
game, Adventu^rers are growing steadily more choosy these
days, and if you can gel a game as good as Robin of Sherlock for
£7.95, then new entries into the market have lo watch both their
quality control and their pxicing very caxehilly. OOR needs
tidying up on-screen at least before attempting to stirvive at any
price over five pounds,
Atmo^here Jrt^actiOii Challenge AA-Ratkig
Price of Magik 85%
Robin of Sherlock ?a%
Seabaae Deha 75%
Very Big Cave Advenfure 79%
OOR 68%
ThePlan^t^ 63%
88%
77%
8S%
76%
See note
58%
Red Hot CHarts.
To The Pilgrim,
My favcunie three adveii:ures are:
1
1 1 Gijn«:
CompAny:
2. Gun«:
Company:
3. Gaiin«: _
Compuy^ ,
My reasons for putting game
number one alcove aj firs: choice
are:
If I'm a lucky Pilgrim and wm a
free game^ ! should Iske to rece-
ive a CDpy of
My address ss(BlX>CK CAPJTALS
ONLY):
Here we go with this monfli's
Readers' Adventure? Chart, Each
month the Pilg receives sackfulls of votes for this popular
feature, and of cokiise there's the chance to win a free game if
your vol© is picke out of the bag by the dejcterous Pilg.
This jnonlh Sed Moon^ popiilar as ever^ was voted into Gr^L
pUce^ What's interesimg. however, i£ that several old Ulles
(Hohbit, Colossal Adventure} are once again poking their heads
up. This juat goes lo prove thai old adveniurea never die - they
just wander in and out of the charts.
This month's lucky Pilg is Fami Martin of War ley, who receives a
free copy of The Never-Endiiig Srory. It's on its way, Paul -
hope you enjoy it as much as I d^d,
1 Red Moon Level 9
2 The Hobblt Melbouxne House
3 Return to Eden Level 9
4 Heroes of Karn Interceptor
5 Lord of the Rings Melbourne House
6 Never Ending Story Ocean
7 Marsport Gargoyle
8 Fantasia Diamond Hewson Consultants
9 Warlord Interceptof
10 Colossal Adventure Level 9
CIttc Sniffing with The Pilgri™ ^
^ 1. J* -,t.^ j^^T ^turk mto this month^s cme
for inclusion m Uua qolumn? Altet au, ii nu»r
help next month. . .
f .^^*vf Su. «. imd th. pouch - J»« h»9 i. »P .!>««
0«p*. win wimoilt hraiouion Mu (he wiBilh
^
StibSuttk
Plunge thai baain and spiU aad on tuat
Weai the stiaineT fox head protection
Warlord
Do not release the wild OX
MindMhsdovf
Go riahing for new/s at the piar
^Thii^k Tycoon' in the reatrocm
S6ai>asc DeStS
Stick the buiton in the lift mth gwn ^^^
You'U have to make something with the barrel cnecK
1 a due ot turn on the hi-B.
TheJfobhjf
WaroB can be killed with sworils r ™ ir, ^et a hiahei
P^t Jll objeclB back whei^ they came from lo get * h.g^
percentage. '^^
SSng DOW c^«10P you from being blown up
Use the aalt to get past the giant slug
> PILGRIM'S
POST
The PUg gets freq^ieni ma£[
about the bugs nt botii Fii^ J/<ji>-
Mt ajwj iiN^/d of efte Smgs, but «
l&ttflT arrived this mtmih which
cl&iM^ lo oflai a paTiia] so-
Ifiiioii. "l wondar if I caii help
Siofie who ar* ha^mg Trouble
with thB Babbit," writes Slstetu
MATBliali ^Richard [AA AprJ)
Mid the program clashed
within IS minittes. According tp
Melbourne Boufi@, the com-
They smy fliat th« meaning of DO
iff wrong and ii^e or it wUl cau^e
the game lo crash„ Thsif sc^
lution i^ siinpte - do not ose the
word DO." Soimds mterestmg,
Simsm^ Ihoagh I oan'r h^lp b^l
Ihixik iihAt ttere miiM be quite a
few mher bugi irt th* pFogram,
jt^dgmg by tlie letteis {¥« hod-
Anyone eb« got any api om
avoiding Hobbit-craaJiew?
Talking of complajj^ts in the
mail, "I wish to complain", com^
plains CbriK PaHofts, ''about
ihe misleading due ftm ga.¥a to
I^ Wilson concejTung the Bftbel
fish in the HitcMiikers GTTC-
You do iLtisd XM Mht^l Fish to
■ODHipI^te ihe gmmeip b^c^use
witJioiit it you cannot g^^ the
atomic vector pSotter Virbiich is
need^ lo m»ke th* in^^nit^ jm-
probAbtUty drive". Complaitit
8«epied. Mr Pajwns. The Pilg
Apologises for b^ing m
mxtwyQpsl, 3ii:qtuy dks
dhwywi. (W*U+ you ajCA iFearmg
youy babel fish, arent you?).
Pat Wmpitanlvy, of totds of Ad-^
venture fame, wrttea of his
«i;q>eri#iice« an ^ Lord, and
make^ on^ or two pointi which I
think are worth repealing, no
hor«iheyai«:
"The problem m that th03# writ-
ing 'I'm ^ttick on adventure x -
help' offen give ms no idea as to
where they are stut^. It wouW
hcJp grchapy a those seeking
help uicjude wUUi their plea s
resume ol objects foi];xid and
problems solv0d, perhaps also
the f$irUii3st localion reach&cE. J
don't want to ^poiJ anyone's fuM
by giving awa/ aiiswers to pro-
blems noi yet reached. Couid
you ask seekers lo help ua help
ihem?!*
Pal theii goes on TO aak if any
readers are imerested ia setting
tip a GAC lyiei^ group for
ihaittig lipa, problems, play-
lesting^ ajid general comparing
^of iriotes, Thig ^oundir like an
^^celient idea, Pat and I aug^
geat that yon also jfi^ntion it to
Incentive themselves. In the
ni:6eiitijrtie, anyone inti^ested
can contact Pat at 13 HoUinglon
Way, Wigan, WN3 6LS.
FiimUy. iMs letter &om GoMn
i^&Tk« amd ince Whanam
really made me taugh. '"We
were playing He^r^^s of JCani,"
they write, "and beiore that w^
were playing For&si ai the
Worth's £jid. We sav^ the (ape
a ihai and then loaded it back
into Heroes of Kmrn. We then
typed I !Q se^ what we were
carrytftg^ and lo. our ainuaement
found that we had: Beien the
King, ytfle B^ar, fOiAidim the
Dw^. Sleeping Bear, Tindef
iox. Copper Ga^es lo the
Sotilh'V Hmmm..any suggesttons
■ - i"^ hfrr «rho STtm kelp 1. 1^. j h, ^f is-iri kvli}r^ k^w t^^rf tkjvf fun!^
^MTtf ..,f ^tff m^f ^P^ryir^OLii ief*U'owff ,»f li^i'trrriff Jp^h.^. «tFfeD^ «.,«, ^frriir
■ IT ntui DOVf^^^fv^t thfA r-j.^i^ U. j^tirr^i^rrr.^ lur.V-A^ ym tmi^m-
A.rlV Ml(¥r rtllHTJll - w £af|^ M*ir ^,JP< frt ^^y^MMl^ h«ivfr
;ViL' Hoifbit /Vay^H- r^tlmf^ ^ry. /frmej e/J?:*rj3, flc?j#?t^ a/ Jlj(i
l£fitfir. T<?jn&/j7ioJj|if7fli plua llmLrftrt h^lp f>n ^j^ge from
Andri>med^, \¥*rhiYi^ M^thtti ^'$^TWi\i?d. lutd ofsh^ Jl-tt^
AleK A]Fd. 13^ i^ryiRLforci Road. Kodgf^ Hill, Hj ri^hivalusi 836
Ar7£jf^j^^j^^_ Muicf.«.^i,Tf^w plus limited lielp on ^ocf Mosfi.
^'di^i^f. tf4^r<^o o/tfTB Jbng:s. Jl^c-JSJ^f^? fr^n.-T? .t^af/aPe^Ja, Fois^iai
the WcrJdjsFniJ. W-dz^eid, Cs^:}e Blat^staT I^fd^f of MidRi^M
Anthwty CoUina, I J UiCh ^qi;ttir, 37 ShawsdaJ^ Boftd, IftrcKmrni^
Dt43d6TC
JdMlti&n WsJ]iimi. ^ lt^ Wselinaail Bxwd, aiillun, Sy rrcy. SMI <p
f^ymimd O'Ne&n. 7 AtdqitiA. Dtttidrum, Pubkn 16, to*
Tfliiy TlCiidwuU. 17 t4t4d4Ay Wny. Hwidirgl«n, Oxford OX3
OLH T*£: 0310 eser/
Prflrfttyti, dwfd, LLl^ m>R <FejipAii a|» WAntiKl ehmIo oj
for what you d get if yom Joadt^d
ft saved vurgion of Lor<f o/ the
Jtogrs tn*o JSie S&<=Tef of St
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pUgrittvNeWS
v<»« ■■"-:; M.-i^'f^r'
olttieirg
fflj^ "^^ *een ^""'^''^es Tk
«.w . e. up ,(j f^^^ _
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irom Ajtdmmi&dA. Mindshfi^OW, Lordf^ Time
Sjanmi Mj[cih4U, S3 Sprm^i^Sfl Wnly, StdcfetOrji Un,?. York, Y03
OHM
R^dMocn. ffJ^btil Dun mrmcK Wiihiid. Messa^ frtun Aridi^t
mi?rifl, Ph^^kr Adt^nniT^^ l^rdt ^lif^idmg'M. King- of IMrki\t:v6\
NvTET Ending Stefy. Dm^ntore. SouJi of Daj^km, Fi^/ktt^t
1tL& Pancotli, Tfl RudtpcilB Lane. W«-vmfiUlh, J^otmf, Uf* SRS
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LNI^SLT ' i|
fth» HnhhH, Subfiunk. Message hosT\ Andimttmi^. Red JWtopi?,
Wonn in Fursdis^, Wia^ A too! c«/ Am^d SSatikwoad.
SMWnfiw, TriiiS of Amtfiif ESactWifiodOtAmfTn^
Mn P«l WiTLBKaAley; 15 HcdliiK/run VVjiy. Wigjji, "TOia 6LS
MindMh,^j^W. Mosssgi^ ifontAndronmc^
wmM
WORLD PUBLISHER OF
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OFFERS YOU A GREAT
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requires constant HIGH QUALITY SOFTWARE
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The tap^-tO"dl$C ^ranster program. 1 ranafera sume turbo
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out alteration. ■"HJGHLV RATED". Amliil ''Discovery docs It
best dcruai tfie widy^l lahge Of gsm$$" AA Fpih ^B6.
'Trabably t^e best of ftie tase-to-diak capers."" AA, Mar 36.
F &aty f cd I n the sen o u s &d1 I wa r g t: h a r1 , A A M arcn "86
2.-MASTERDISC" 'NEW*
Theonly oi&i^ ulslity package v^ J willcver need, Itimpf&pf am
rea: ydMSitai'.
^MAGE - rimka bac^tups t^ryour diSks (irtc. iunn^ tormats.
nTc)
DI11ECT0HY EDITOR - unerase f to. ariow hidden Ciics
secL/f0Mas,*?lc:.
SPEC D roHM - roma i your disks ightning fasi .
S E CTO R E Dl TOR -com plete s^tor^ditor.
DE PROTECTOR -^deprolsct a Basic prcgrann.
DISK HEADER - dispiay i&laf I, englh . type, etc of files
TAPE H EAOEfl - as for diik header tout for tape.
TRAMSf CS: Iransrtfr individual f^es from tape to disk o-
dish Id disk.
DSKMAP - shows how Mes arester ed oa d?Ek
TVPESTV LE - display on screen or primer e^y ASCIt Ute.
DUMPf 1 L E -display Mex/ASCll lar Tal rcrconlent^o^ a I \^
DiSK-sp6edLpyourd!Skdriv»byupto20%.
T|iis(li:skdoe^L|alP
On 464. eW p 6 T2S. D isk on f y E 1 2 .39,
OVERSEAS PLEASE ADD £1 00 FOR POSTAGE AND PACK^NG
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^ Ftrlf a hw46r ... t-tft Hulinl Mnvlf .., . J.I9 PUfltl qI Dtllh £ Jli^il. .
R(p)dnd Gai£ QbifiMg 2 J9 A View la d Kill .t.l3 EifhioMfli lilind (A#rk
Sp#iifteriiiift„.„,„,.., 2.11 ArabbanNiihis. ........... ,1. 1! SnioMr
Wunciiit „.. „,.J.S9 hr?fl Wprldf Effli,,r„ J. 93 Gr*nd ffii Orivtr....
CUfnbii ...^..^».........^..=Z.Sa Hf ret* cf Ksri* ....- 2.99 Aiim I .............
Splitl ■ ■ -. ....H.s....,....M«.., . 3 .3S Jwi ill □! Bibf Im. , , . H . H^ . J . 9S S #b < t Wu 1 1
Ams^Dir ..... ............ 2. 99 (i4l-tcfishrp 2^9 Hud Oivr Wokow:! 1§
Alien Brtakin ..^....,,..,..^..2,99 Wirllfll ...1 99 Slutt Dtfi«4 Snddkit ..
A|(»mSmiBh|ir ..2.l&ChvfpfiT Sqitad ...,. -3 59 RamlM
JtE Bfldt Jack ..........2.9gApirirflinsd*...,..........,. ItgN MA D.
Cflin? gf StrjiFu .,,,, ?,flg Chudiii l|fl..,.,...,.*H.i.....-3 99 Hypffip^m ,..,,,,,.
SiNiEi Njiwhfi ...2.99Hijntc-r K*\\m J 99¥ie Ar Kung Fu ..........
Cr^?V Gi(^ll^--.-.riHHM^r-ii-^-2 99 Maslfr ChlK......^.....- J 99Thtr S^llJ 4 Mil lien 3
Cufaii .= ...2.99Stif Cfliiim«irf& .. . .3 99 W«^ fphhiTigw .........
Pynchif...., ..2.99 htunchMtk 3 99 HfidOptlif
l^Str Wsip ....„....,-,. ..5 99 *!oiT- irni*li#f . J.^aElilt. .,,,., ,.
A-LtTQ Allitk ..4 ....2 99 Hgme Hmim , ....,,.,.,.3 99Urd dI tlii ftlup ...
KiunTid HiA^tt. .2 99 Mnmc Mitt«F 3 9:9Suptr Ttll
S-tflchmirhll .. .2 f9irnificiri FHTb«JI. |$dKniglil Rirfof* ..,,..
Classic A4vtn1lft 7 ^3 Alien ,.,... J J9 Fi ink it^iHvlffWiOrir
30 liftvAiiir . .............. .2 99 IcfuAEt i*b.... ............... 3. 99 Dtinfrusifrrs'
tM§ NiineJUtrt...... . .2 S^Miinif Fm m UfV«|it.... JJ9lm^iiifatt Miniefli*....
Viif4r PJptliMlL 2 Ifliiigiin PhI .3J9WiNtr t^ifflft' ...........
Bianti .,,..,.„..., ^. ,,,,,... I. ll|iii!|iBf£iwel(:« .,..„.....J,iiFernuli I ..............
Utitti ivi ^.^ -^p^.tt InfH Hni .399 Cbilkf ^,. .
Ut yp Pflifcif .-,-., .. .^*^,. . ..f . M PriiiKtiaMi ....... J.fl« H^iVHi^quMtt „ „ .
HitB»i*ck bolt ........... 2 t9Htrbef is Dynnnv Run. .3 9SS^3 c^ i n^^bot^'.^.'^.-^-
Li»liTfnii»,............^-^-2.99CvinfDfM s AWdJv ....3.t9Civ«f of Of^om
Ce4t Niffit N«il It . XHSfcip d Dniii tA#v| _.,..a 99 Leecffla6o4i ....,..,«.,...
HiiFhfi AllMfc..., ...2.S9IK1 CuraifA^ ........ ...199 Fiiitfi K«tf«lt.„.^ .,
TRJIiDEA QVAItTITV ORDERS
(idftlVh Vt :-^b J S £2 9a OtCQiS for ^ - t E 3 75
O^nrpfis fir'ted l £3 fl9 - Ordors fi^r 50 ^ t C2 CM3>
ChwiliJtHi it^ttf (K^EUt ij*<ll?rs PFUI^I^ pavihl** ^n AitCADE INT. SOFTWAHi #ii4
Bvnt Ic
Unll 20a ShDHfltfig H^IU htyrlle Road
£a«1 Hantp London EO t«ti 01 '47£ 9900
Shop ^P4n Man-^l, $.3D-S.<>0. Thursdav^ ft. 30-1.00
O^ F Fl.^F AS OR nF R S C H t OU t ii U?^ L ¥ '
turu|Jbii:i.UO^*^ti pe^ ijpe P*P rSO* - i4e CiD.OOF i
Eii«wn*rt t2.00 tKira pt?r tdpe P*P |50 ' - sdct r?5 f>C)
3 99
3 39
..4.SD
. AHU
.490
..4.5D
. E.7I
. eib
,.I.7S
E7&
7.?l
.7.15
.7.21
roSD
1 1 95
^^
.J.2i
.7.25
.7.2S
.7.15
. I tt
Iff
. I 99
1 9t
1 99
I 19
lit
16 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
There** lomefliing for ^veryoii© in this moftlh's type-
ins. If you've got a disc drive and a printer, Ca/£5 fel'&
you produce a printed disc cdlulog without booting
CP/M. If cos setter are more your CUp of tea, Sp^^dSK
lets you save at ^peed. Or if all this ^dynds o bit too
boringly proctical tKe omazing — and guaranteed
completely impractical — Bfitter will knock your socks
off. It's the graphics type-in to end them all - unless
you know better!
SP£ED 3B
If you own a 464 and c^n't aflford a diro dxiv^, Chri* ficJ/d 's mfty
little prograwi will give you (ha* extra oftAaette speed ?ou>&
b*eiv iookiiig for. ir» v&xy short, it's ^ery ^airr to «3% and ti
gives you a 3 fetJobaud teviiig speed - tiiat> 80% fanfer thaii
ipeed wnie 1 . If s v&ry raliahte a« liigh-speed savaa go, aiough
a jiloW"^av#d bscJrap rtevi^r doe* any harm. Just type in, oa-re
aiui run it, and Vmn save programa iji the nozmal w«y - hut a
fair bit fimejT. It'U latt until yov switctt off, ««^t or ii«e a SPEED
WHTl oomtnand.
10 nEM thl» B9ta mpevd 3001^ baud
JP^ ^untn ch^n^vd b;/ »p9vd writ*
;j^ FOR *«tr£:^ff^ TO I-B709
40 REAP n*: POKE a p VAL i h« ^
50 NEKT
60 CALL tce70^
70 DATA ir2 1 p tr6e t ^ • ^3» ^ BtFf p l^c d , 1^63 , fcbc ^ fc c 9 . ^
CAT#8
If you own a printer and uae discs, you've pt^ob«ib1y wondered
abotil caialoguing to the printer. Thai wooid save you all ihose
picbtemii trylrtg to remember just what the filename was,
halfway through some tricky operation. The only problem is,
Baeic won't let you. If you try typing GAT#S, you'll just gel a
syntax error meaaage. To your rescue comes Justm MAddm
with this handy little uolity to give you a h^xd-^opy CAT. Th^te
are two versions - one for the 464, and a shorter one to lake
advantage of the COPYCHRJ function on the 664 and S1Z8. It can
handle system, data or even IBM formats. Clever atuGf^ and tthoil
too!
3 REN **##iHt*#i-**^IHe#f-**l^*it*
^ REM CAT#i by J.M-M«cklir^
? REM ****#**♦#** ***#*^Nt####
I REM 664/6129 version
1^ i-SSppa^-'IrtOOE 2: CAT
40 WNTLE p«C>" «:z = 7 + J:L0CATE IpiSGOSUB IserrWEND
^0 FOR J< = 1 TO 16;LPCATE x,2:G0SUB ISe; t»-t«*p*! nfxt
d0 FOR ^^1 TO 5^: LOCATE x*i*i:<50suB 1 sfl*; u*-w*+p*: Ne>:T
70 GOSU6 Z00-PPlNT#©p*- CATALOGUE" | TAB tJ^CS rt*E TAB f7eMu*; GC
80 FOR y=4 TD 1*1: FOR ^^l TO 00
9^ LOCATE Xpy-'GOSUB 150: v»»w» + p*r NEKT
1^0 PRINT#l8g v«: v»=":WEKT
lie QOSUE 200! MODE J: END
1 50 p *= COP YC HR* (**»>: RE TURN
2B0 pRiUTie.siRiNGaree, --'*:retui?n
Cij*feii«*i^«*a4«t«s«wii« AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986
<**amaian 273 7
cataract
"dimness 440
443 '^^
catarrh 299
catastrophe
«w<M/er 619
fintah 729
misfortune 735
end 67 ^
Jostentna 45
^<>nff4l5
9^ 480a
joke 497"
S^^^her the mean.
c
C
Cfl
^0
30
4G)
50
&0
-^0
36)
9je)
5 00
I 1 P
120
13er
1^0
150
160
1^0
:^90
1 ^?r
200
2J0
220
230
250
260
Z7n
280
330
340
^50
360 IF d%<0 THEU d%=d%+4#^^+6: GOTCl 3'?<?P
3 ^0 <f %= d % + 4-PK 5< % - y % > + 1
3^0 y%'^y%-2
3^0 x%^'f<%*2
400 WEND
410 RETURN
420 d~^- ^ChAti^g« VAfiable D "for spi^f^d
430 K£V 1, ''cal i^bc02:mr5dF^ ^M i *t " +CH^« U S3
440 ENV 1^ 14^ -1 , 2: 'S^t up vn^BlopvB mn4 v«i-i«bl«B
450 ENT 1 , l^filjSi 1
4*0 dr=i in l-3:cl2^V: fr=l: ^<i%=-l; yd=-0* S; K%=30ry«15
470 FOR x = Z TO 14 STEP 2: INK w,6:TMK >^ * 1 , 2A: NEXT : ' Si?t
o correct ?;c7lpurs
4£^0 INK 15,1: INK 1,2: INK 0, 1 1 : BDPOEP li
4'?0 WHILE m5iirplDop=0
*nPPPF THK c:I,A:IWK c12,26
510 OUT ^BC 00, 12: OUT «(BD0fil, 4B+ I NT ( t %^?56 J I OUT fclC00,13:OUT ic
BD00.t% MOD 256: 'Use?* CRTC regis-tet 12 fc 13 to stt OPrSET fo
52J0 IF x%:>-5 OR ^%<i^ THEW IF ^d%=-l THEN SDUF^r I,15^^p0pl,l
,1 ELSE SOUND 4, J5J30,Jei, 1,1^ 1 ELSE «(=s
530! yd = yd-0.5:KX^x%+xd%
IF x^>35 OR ?c%<15 THE ^d%-- .d^: dr- dr
tX=K%+ O0afy? -FOP a-1 TO d:CALL B^BDl 9 : NEXT: ' U»* FRAME ms
«=0-2
x^l20
cl% = ?
MODE
FOP >^%=M:0^0 TO 5xF7FF STEP 2:PaJ<E x%, l^DtNEXT
POP >l%=|fFB0P TO *,FFFF:P0KE ^1?%, 1 92: NEXT
GOGlrB :^10:ORI<>TN 0,0,0, A40p0,40l!<
CD 1*1
FOR kfck=i TO 100
FOR J<^^=s TO col
■<^.^-4
IF x^0 IHEN ?=-0.2
IF < = -12CT THEN GQTO 29-p'
d =
PLOT 32ef, 300,1
FOR t^c' 90 TO ^7^ iTEF 4
chk-INTf :?^0+100*i:TNit':i> >
IF chk=25^3 015 [;:hJ< = 24^ OR chi<^15^& OR chk=lS(o THEN d = l
IF chk=2'?^ OR chk = 2ef- OR chk=i29 THEN d=0
IF d = l THEN T>RAU 32i3t x#COS (tX* , 200+1 00*?TM f ^r^St > , c% ELS^ B
:>20+ >^ ^tCO S r t % > , 200 + 1 00^fS I N C t% J HI c J%
NEXT t%
NEXT l-rk
col-ciQl ^3: cS=cTi+i :c ir=ci%+l
IF c%^15 THEN c%=3
JF cl?t = 15 THFM c:l^ = 3
ne>;t kku
GOTO 420
END
>:%-0Sy%-I00iOPieiN 3S0^ 20^^^: PLOT -2,-2pS
<t%-i3-^^^r
WHILE <%0/%+2
PLOT •^%^'/%itP.A^ -^%,.^%:FL0T y%, ^%3l>RflW -)^%,,,>!iii PLOT -•;<%,-
bt May we biought yoti ihree shmning graphics demo
piograma whlcht wtimg ihsX litQe bit ertrm our of Arnold, Ws
thought they puahed the old CPC hardware about as far as ii
oouM go, bat P^ul Bond ot St, Hel«ins p!:ove<i us wrong, lEs
type-in, £tLfter, mimics a d^mo progtam Comm&do3re tuse to
^€w off iheix ertorrrvOUHly ezpensive Amiga pei^ofial com-
puter.
The demo is of a huge red aad ^hite foa&aU, bomic±i^ and
gpinnmg al lh& same time, agaiitst a grid background - and it
tak^s leal power to do that properly. Wiih Paul's program.
Arnold can match computers nearly ten times more expeiusiTe -
tiot bad. for 3K of B^mct ^A the perfect demo 10 piii you in the
mood for fte World Cup.
I nJs^
540
550
550
P5
of CALLI.DD19 on 66^ ti 612B
y^/+ydJlF v^ll THEN yd^F.S
IF yd-2 TH£N SOUND 2,10^0^0.1,1^1
cl-el*dr:IF cl'^l^ THtN cl-3 ELSE IF cl-^
tontrol of INK valm^^i to givp itlusicin of
THEN gI-14: 'K#*
rot^t ion
5?e cl2ocl2+dr:lF c 12-15 THEN cl2=3 ELSE IF cl2«2 THEN cl2=l
4
6^0 u£:nd
78 JULY 1936 AMSTRAD ACTION L^^i!fi<>«(aii<..,jyi*imfl«
Absolute
Beginners
PARTS
Andrew Wilton conHnues his series
on Basic proc)ramming thaf s so
easy to understand, even our
publisher reads it.
missed out a vital pieca of th© "Amstrad Action../* menage. To
fix this, type...
Last month, you typed in a program. It was a very simple
program, and didn't do anything a compound command
couldn't do. Here's another program foi^ you, and this one '3
even simpler j ust type . , .
JOCLS:P»INT"Amgtrad Action"
...,^«Etiembering the space after ttie number 10, This
doein'T do anything foir th€ time being - program instructions
aren t earned out untU you type RUN. H you read the first
instalment o( Absolute Beginners, you won't actually need to run
the program to work out what it doe$^ The CLS clears the
screen, and liie PRINT command writes the message ^'Amairad
Actign' on the top line. You can take another look at the
program by typing LlST-
Onoe you've typed Ais in, and RUN it to check that it does
work properly, you 11 probably wani to expand it a bit - aftei
all, it's not very escciting *is it is. Try typing in...
20 PRMT^'from Futiire PubMhutg"
-..and again you'll see that nothing happens. Wow, type
RUN: Syntax errors permitting, you'll see the screen clear and
ihe message...
AiTLEtirad Action
from FuttATe Fubliahing
..appear at the top of the screen. Type LIST^ and youMl get
a look at this new. improved program It should read...
10 Cl*Sdf%INT * ' Amstrad A<^on' *
30 PRINT"from Future Publisihiiig'*
hi othex words, the program coirisms of bQth the pieces oi
text you've typed in. These pieces of text are called program
lines, and the numbers at the beginning ate their Im& numborM.
We saw last time that the line number tells Arnold ''Thi^ i^ a
program line - don't obey it until you Ye lold to/' What we
didn't cover was what any particular number at the start of a
line means.
THE RIGHT ORDER
A3 far as Arnold ib concerned, any iiistiuttioii starting with a
number is a program line. When a program Ime is typed m,
instead of obeying the instnictions in die line, he jual adds them
to the other program lines you've typed in so far - to the
program, in other words. The question is. where does he put
tho new line in flie list of lines you aSready have? This is where
the line number ccntes in.
If you've typed in the example lines, and LISTed the
program they formed, you'll notice a flaring oimasion. W^'ve
IS PRWT^ 'the ntouM-br^efeig mega^Si^ '
-m
...and LIST the result. You 11 see that the new Line has been
fitted in berween the other two, kke ihjs...
I d XZS;¥BWT' ' Arfi*te*d Ajetion '
IS PRlKT"The mo^d-breaktag m«gai^<s''
;aO ?RiHT\*££»m future Publ^^
..,even though it wa£ typed after both of ihem. This is
because Arnold always deals with lines in nonieiiciJ ordert rio
matter what order you type th^ti m. For another demonstration
of thi^. try typing RUN. You'll get the message. .
f|imi$trad Action
Arom Future Ptibllehmg
...on youE scrfrer.. There are a couplG of points to note here.
Firf tly. the order in which you type ihe lines is of no importance
whatsoever - once you've typed them in. Arnold L^Ts and
RUNe the lines according to their Jine numbers.
Secondly p the actual number of a line has no meaning of its
own. [ only gave the new line the number 15 so thai Arnold
would store it in between lines 10 and 20 - if fd niad« it line 17
that would have worked every bit as well. Indeed, we could
have called the first line we typed line 146, and ^e second line
we typed line 673 - this would produce eicactly the »ame
results p provided thai we gave the most recent line some
number between the two. It's the order of the line numbers ihat
matters p not the number^ themselves.
That's enough on progr^ns for a while. We*ll have a
summary ai the end of the article, but firit here are the graphics
I promised last issue.
PLOTTING
Last month's bit on inks and colours was the tough half of
graphics K This month tMngs should be a whole tot easier. Type
in this little program...
10 CLS
20 PtOT 190,100,1
...atid RUN it. The screen clears, and a tiny dot appears
down near the bottom left-hand comer of the screen. Not very
impressive, perhaps ^ but that's what PLOT does - it plots a point
on the screen.
As you can see< there are three numbers ^ei the com-
mand. Avid AB readers will recognise these as op&r^iitds -
those crucial pieces of extra information that teU Arnold how to
perform the commands you give him. While PLOT tells Arnold
that you want to plot a point, the operands tell him where and
what colour you want it.
The first two operatids carry the ** where" inforifiadon.
They are the £?o-ordjnaies of the point « Don*l be put off by the
sound of the word - co-ordinaies are very simple ihings. Just
remember, we're trying to tell Arnold the position we wani a
point plotted at. using numbers rather than words. This is
nothing ditCicult - we do this sort of thing all the Hme with map
references. We describe the position of a place by raying how
far east or west it is of some fibted point, and how far north or
south.
If I take Somerion as my fixed point, I can describe the
poaitjon of Edinburgh as some number of miles north of here
AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 19S6 IS
afid aom^ other niimber of milea east. Provided you know
where I'm measuring from and what units Vm measuring in,
df^^ae Iwo numbers tell you where Edinburgh is. Thoae two
nmnbei:^ mo the co-oi^dinaies of Edmbiurgh.
Screen CQ-oTdinaTes are just the aame. The Ciied point is the
bat torn left-hand cornet of the screen, so the co-ordinates
measure how far to ihe right of this corner you warn the point
and how tar above it. Thus PLOT 150,100.,.. wili plot a poini 180
units in fiom the left-hand edge and 100 units up from the
bottom of the screen. The units don't actually have a nam@ bke
''mch«s" Qx "metres" or anything; so we'll just ksep calling
iherd, units.
The chief thixig 1o notice about the units ie that they're very
small indeed. If you take a look at how dose PLOT ISOJOOmh^
pum the poiitt to the bottom left of the screen, you get some idea
lusl how small lliey are. The screen 1$ In fact 640 uiiii$ wide and
400 units high. Using this knowledge^ we can teJl that eg PLOT
3£0»200,.,. Will plot a point right in the middle of fhe screen.
We know (hat (h« first operand tella Arnold how far to the
right we wanE the point to he, and that the second operand tells
him how high we want it. Now it a nme to look at the third
operand. This amply tells Arnold what ink you want the point to
be drawn in. Thus. PLOT 150.100.1 plots the point in ink 1, which
wiU be bright yeUow unle$$ you've chamgs^d it wifli am INK
command.
A STRAIGHT LINE
JKt thi^ Stage, it^s hard co do anything very exciting with PLOT. A
more powerful command is DRAW. Reset the machine - hold
down < controls and <,ahift> and press the esc- koy type in...
iOCLS
20DRAW1S0J004
„.and RUN it. An imp d riant point lo note here is that
resettmg th^ machine destroys the previous progiam. In this
^ase that was what we wanted to happen, but this won't always
be BO. Before you jre^t the ntachine you should always be su^re
you won*i mind losing the program you were workbig on.
When you run the program you'll see that it draws a Ime
between the tK^ttom lefi of the screen and the point we were
plotting at before. Now, try running the program again. This
time. i\ behaves just like the PLOT program we started off with -
it just drawa a single dot on the screen. Why tho difference?
The graphics part of Locomotive BASIC acts as if Arnold is
using an invtsibla pen. When you switch on or reset the
machine, this imaginary graphics pen startfl off at the bottom
left-hand corner of the screen. PLOT moves the pen to a given
point and makes a mark there. DftAW, on the other hand,
moves the pen to a point leaving a trail as tt goes - a straight
line from where the pen was to where you told Arnold you
wanted iL
The first time you ran the program the pen was in the
bottom left corner, because you'd only just reset the machine.
The DKAW command moved the pen to the point ISO light, 100
up - Bind the line you got was the trail it 3efi. The second time
you ran the program, the pen wa* already af the point 150 right
and 100 up, so the DRAW command didn t move the pen a i all. It
just made a little mark where Arnold 'put pen to paper", ready
to mark the trail. Arnold doesn't check to see that the DRAW
oommand really i^ going to move the pen. He leaves that up to
you.
MOVING THE PEN
When we use a DRAW command, we use mo of the operands to
tell Arnold where we want the line to end. As fox where we
want it to start, that's a bit harder. The graphic pen must, if you
think about it^ already be at your chosen starting point before
you give Arnold the DRAW command.
The question is, how do we get the pen to the chosen
starling point? Well, a PLOT command will do the trick -
remember how I said earlier thai PLOT m.ove« the pen to a point
and then makes a mark there? So, if you PLOT at the Start poini
of your line and then DRAW to the end pointy the mark made by
the PLOT command wiU normally be overwritten by the DJLA.W
line anyway.
A better general way is to use the MOVE command. This is
like PLOT, cxcepi ii doesn't make a mark at its de$iinalion - ii
just moves the pen. Withcut reletting the machine - with the
program still intact, in other words - type...
15 MOVE aOp60
Before you do anything el^e, try tc work out where thiA new
line IS is going to fii iuto The program. Then type LIST, so see if
you got it right. Now. RUN Uie piogiam- You should get a
straight line running from the point 80 right, 60 up to the point
150 right, 100 up. The two operandi of MOVE are co-ordinates -
they tell Arnold where you want ihe graphics pen mowed to.
You might have noticed one important difference between
MOVE on the one hand, and PLOT and DRAW on the other -
namely, that MOVE only takes two operands. The tJttird operand
is missing, but Otis does make aense if you think about il for a
moment. After all, Oi^i third operand of PLOT and DRAW tells
Arnold the number of the ink you want used in the graphic pen.
Since MOVE doesn't actually mark The screen at all. there's no
real need to specify what ink you want in your graphics p^n.
Having said that, [ should just make a couple of points.
Firstly, you can actually leave otil the third operand of PLOT or
DRAW. If you type PLOT 160 JOO (or example, Arnold rakes that
to mean "move the pen lo ISO righi, 100 up and make a mark
ihoro with whatever ink i5 already in the pen'\ in practice, thi^
means the last ink you specified in a PLOT or DRAW command.
There are times when this can save you aome effort, but for now
you're much better off using the third operand. Secondly, fi64
and 812S users can yse a third, irJc-spBcifying operand with
MOVE, This isn't something you'll fmd very useful for the lime
being.
SUMMARY - PROGRAMS
A PROGRAM LIME is any piece of text you type in which starts
with a number. The number (h^i it starts witl\ m caUed the LINE
NUMBER.
Whje-n you type in a program line. Arnold stores it away along
with any other lines you ve previouaily typed in. Thia stored
collection of lines is your PROGRAM.
You can view your program by usmg the LIST command, or
make Arnold obey the instructions in the program by typing
RTJN
Program lines are stored, listed and obeyed strictly in numer-
ical order, slartmg with the lowest numbered line and working
upwards. The order in which they're typed in is of no sig-
mficanceatall.
Resetting the machine wiU wipe out any program you Ve typed
m - BO bm oareful!
SUMMARY - GRAPHICS
A point on the screen is specified by its CO-ORDINATES. These
are numbers, the first indicating how far the point is to the right
of the screen's left-hand edge and the second indicating how far
I it is above the screen's lower edge. CTo-ordinaters can range
from to etO units left-right, and from to 400 tanlts bottom to
top.
The GRAPHICS PEN is Ihe imaginaify tool which is used for
plotting pomts and iJiawing lines.
PLOT moves the pen lo a 3pe<::ified location and plots a point
there. It takes three operands: the first two are the co-ordinate?
of th@ point the pen i^ to move to, and the thud i.s the number of
I UiL' ink the point is to be plotted in.
DRAW moves the pen to a specified location, leaving a straight-
line trail. As with PLOT it takes three operands, the first two
bt'mg co-ordinates and the third being th**^ ink-number for the
line.
MOVE moves (he pen to a specified location, without marking
llie screen at all. It lakes two op^srands, being the co-ordinatf^a
of die potinl the pen i» to be moved lo.
80 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
FIGHTING FIT
That's what you'll need to be if you win the Melbourne
House Kung Fu games that we are giving away!
Two games on one disc: that's what we are
giving away in this competition - and thirty
copies too. The games are Fighting Warrior
and The Way of the Bxpioding Fist, and will
run on your 664, 6128 or 464 with disc drive.
I warn you, both games are pretty violent. The
Way of the Expiodng Fist has you in a
Japanese setting in front of a 8ud0htst-style
temple. You t>attte your opponent with 19
different fighting moves from 'novice' to tenth
'dan'. Simulation is in 2D but the action is fast
and furious.
By way of contrast, Figh^ng Warrior Is
set in Egypt, under the shadow of the
Pyramids. You are ttie Fighting Warrior, and
have to tianie your way past a series of
assorted demons to rescue the beautiful
princess. You are armed with a swonj and, 1
warn you. the sound effects are pret^ reatistic^
The Competition:
All you tiave to do to win Is answer the
following four questions correctly. The first
thirty correct answers out of the hat on Friday
16th vtuiy will receive copies of the Melbourne
house disc.
The Questions:
1 . What was itie name of Itie wandering t>ero in the TV
series KuiTgFu?
a. Yoo Flung Dung
b. Ching Ctiow Mein
C- Kwai Ctiang Kane
2. Wlio played the hero in the series?
a David Canadlne
b-HlimphreyBogart
c. Richard Chaniieflain
3. What was the hero's nict^ame?
a. Buttertty
b- Grasshopper
c. Fred
4. Which of the following are Martial Arts?
a. Kendo
b. Shao Mai
c. Chop Suey
^1^
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^
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as.SaC (Le-.-ei 551 L&e H&aly. WnLi,i]l
Alien Bre^-In
SSOLttSO Grjwrrja TaTlor. Easi XiiJJt .ii>.
Aiien Highway
6S.13Q J*-S rdw.irHs, Aberdeen.
?i,jfieO Bab Wade, SamtfEOE.
Jim^golf
Andxoid Ofia
Andraid Twq^
36 ABO Stephen Rdq4t^^. WlnUxwrne Paiir
jj,4BDP*uja.>fei) Sirmlty.
ajSIP Paul Riasli:i;m. Mult^t Di4f^cu
Batman
a J6S Bab Wad^^ SdAW-nOQ-
Eattl« Beyond lh« Staifs
]£140Q MMiAfiJ Ck rik . Ne«lon Grudge.
Battle 4fth* PLftnfltf
Beach-Head
[£4.3<raKik. Cumnoi.
1 24. ^!0e Paid Sl«g^, aiAXK^Mffi.
Binky
Blaggvr
??^<^ <i,9^ivl J4J Sman Mwley. Nordi
f»,5gr: Antony CnrcWty. BnwtaelL
Bombjack
44^^110 Dlkvui Di^tiAi*, liondan.
395,(130 Eoger Wd*&n. Bl*d£bm!i.
3€S.5«I Bab Wkdfr.SflCMrtiKi.
Bern] derda All
I A.ap i3i.^(i:;s MiCM*] Vwiwy, Sartle.
Bounder
Bottiity B&b StrUces B*ck
I Q 1,000 i;L4^v^ I L) Col^n Xi^tt-^. D'^mfeMinen.
gZ, 14C (Irt! ve] 5) 5haz3d Ra-M, Muior P»tJC-
Bnaji Bloodax^
iupQistar
Btiaii lack's %
CfaaUenge
4.tfiy Da-7:d E^tor, Jghmi«W.
4 JS$ Charge Reaves. ^ihdJord
Brace Lee
fiS 55^ Andrew 3JT. Tim
£3.475 D Maimard. Foiei' Ko-^.
Cauldron
tlCi.OSS Hick TtmaT. Bnd^fttordi.
T0,"25O FaJph Ttsoict 4 N**tK»i.
ChiU«r
S>I1K)iiaiCl«^^r. Winga£&.
T.bm LkiydBuLkr. Sirmui^lwn-
S.915 C'.LlJO:d ftJUOiR, B^pk«f,
5.ZW -CM Carter, London.
Chuckic Egg
S.Oe; .080 -rLewfll SSfll ^Kah Steele. Didcot.
S72.5B0 4 1^ vol 40> O41I MoUvxt,
GodeiaajTte Mat 1
1.141 cniQeAiii^T Kutf^iFid.
IJ0«G«Qf9« (If MVd. BTadfoTd-
Cfld^Lune Mat 2
^. i OC) K«-lvm Ckrke. Tetfaid.
45.700 H&ch«<l OrmM&CL BuiT-
Conibat hfnx
$4^.T0D Andnw riT. PvnS^
^iQ;im Ow«llMicC«rv^, CSaAfow.
500.000 Euafcfijeiatim AaEboTg-
J2J.S7t3 i!j£hard Orrhi^l, Hiary-
Confii^ioa
SKl.mS fLc^cl &6] Lamianflali, Oywlej.
L4Jf.,LiS[U*^ftJ;ji)r ~" ~"
iThe CoTfl-naAl
\AA8 5?i5.U? TlifflTfi. BriaiflL
J 55.4 1 @ .flmliuiv fUck. ArunplOTL
l5S,3$4 Di^Tid SnudTi. Ctuppdiig Sodbuy-
]80,68>affmg Taylor, E< Kiitort^.
>f games to £€f your sfghls on this m&nth with
£ome really tough battles For the ii^p spot under way.
Both The C^venar^f end Get Dexter ffom PSS are the
svbject qF close stfuggfes which bok set to continue.
The two Elite games Bpmbfack ond Commando are
laJso geH'ing tight ot The tap.
Two games that hcive stMf to see the best of the
action are Batman and Bounder but you eon exped to
see them get busy next mortth. The Art DepartmenI has
made another determined effort to get on the score
tables^ with Trev getting the ball rolling on Shogun
with a very impressive score !hot will take some
beating.
Dl"3SiLpert«l1
(Chzrthumlsi^ ^f £Ay ^* lA^
4^. l^ Sb^t W«od. 1h'*Adszs:I|,
Death Wake
]73.:a2JaM-Ji.ir\Veppr ffsr^ferd
Defend or Die
|.34ajP00 S;nor^$ensKi, Zb*"^*^
^571 .S^ Pasil K!^*2 Cht^SMis.
iD^^OS^rd^e Twa 3hUe Aah
DonH Panic
DoDTs of Dofmi
70 C^tnf }4i^gfaE^ CnBlc3q^
DyMUidCeDaa
3.000 ton MC-VL-'-ir. CiisgsT
2.967 Colin Lm^'^U. dub^t
Elecixa Fieddy
4. MS Ai-:^ Thi-ssQ-. H€bb^
Er*bert
l3£JO0U*Ht=.-.=ES— .-Jr. Kewpor:
1 32,300 mvt Cai^r Ear. Slieer.
Everrone's a WaEy
3,0mACnmih^w Sa^rUmm
a, 1 30 Afl*iww Pflidj. Wajdiwr
Jaiifastie VoTage
riglLtIng Wanior
2De,aS0 Kiek A..i«i K^Sl^Kit
FizwaiA
54 JOO 0«fi* Sa=Kir. SwaBfi
39.$Ma«TiwWwr.riSB
Fiamkie goes to HoUywood
Oi,SOO L W> ^ 3Cji r*r. s;*" 7? jEss'^f «
m000{78*->TofeT.SayeL
Fmitf Frajik
■W.OtO Ardy K*eb:e Bi^-Jsy,
Galactic FUgu€-
645.9CPC' Glite ■ar.ti. WTt.iimfil*
Gaii^rTtlei
OtiosUiustefs
iOae g^j^ L-s,rt s:: xci-
GhoiLli
Gilligafi's Gold
~2^ f ■ . * s-^- " -j-per.. 4>?ndee
ID GiaBd Prix
:! r^: "rir.£rn?=-.2^^=C«.£h^ft&*ld
CT^nd Frijc Rally 2
:: :r, : :.r^irL=iiMai»i(d.
GyfOMOp^
SajTlftf Attack
Bauntftd Hedges
Sif bway Encaimlflr
A'w^tf^rft*
BlichliikeT's Golde
Hiuichback
-^TmfL^AftHlflA
Htutch^ackZ
« . AlrtPl lUl i
82 JULY 19B6 AfyJSTRAD ACTION t^... «« »> «»^
Jugg^RiBiit
9.SD0 Mjchac] Sp<?4^^ Da^AgluitM,
aeo,BOO Afkdi^w Pqi^«j:3. ]:>4TE«iimi.
3T5.flOO Adrhifi MeGtTsnv. dorclisiiliiz.
llCnngFu
^RH jnn Deris Ckjjudi^n. Filwy.
307.000 Ml*^hftftt WLlkea. Siouibf idfl«.
Loconic^tloit
&,tO! Kit* DttaTY, S^mnton.
2J^ Minhri^l pawTue, DalitVL
MacracQHnilcm
Majuc Miner
230. 1 ] a Wjitt.^ l*ar-oycl, eiunlvjr.
eTnTEl Jack CflHrfoh, Diibttn
Mkiider
£3a.MS Miifir Witgner. Pihjwi.
£S^,3«1 G«irO« S*^¥**, HtJKftetO,
£^.afi«i M^le Tw:t. dnrvfy UvAd-
Monty oil the Rqp.
4.3SO Mflflin ilollnpfi, ScJ^dJcb
Moam Baggy
1S7.310 PiiikTh Giuit. MDibrmkt.
Moon Grepla
^.MO Ragfff Wiliflft, ll»5lrti^ni,
2& J70 DavuI HyDf, GcvbuE G^C^n.
i 0^70 Sim n Htitchmjam , Reidlni;.
IShP^O Pbioi Wright, StpnTfKin,
L9jj:^U Jatrny TtuamBQis, LeSghccm EiJZEard.
Mutant Mftnty
4S„3£OFhil W^nd. BrenfnoMl.
mgtatihmdv
] .SSG.OOD JulAHU &uim, Nawptiil.
iMornEid
1 laji'O Adimn SiU, aolloiF.
L^,70ifJ Kry^Ti jB.m*i, Cfcev*ilfl«.
liridCTu
JULY CHALLENGE
Scots clialUnged: tS.8@0 on
Thing en a Spring by Andrew
Barratr.
Challenger and Teas^v: Steven
Din^dalo. He imed Ihe cheat
mode, [ was tJieie. He's ray
ny^l^. WeU was.
Hmifib^T One
1,222 J t" S©fl11. Lonffridg-a.
1 ,a[Wl T^i4"hiird Omuoft, BLLry.
OtiHldiAn
Oae Man and hiK Drold
Lb.saa liiiho:! BoQl, Wiiiiam.
LI^.4fW ^uiirt Montgomery. LdtXiiiiiiA.
On lii« Run
71.1 ID D^VLbel SiiTh^AiTTiAii,. !k>uiKini|:i{au.
QC,p^ BtJiibi S-ui^l^ Ouccft'i Pvk^
Plnbyi Wizard
4a,1lS Cir*l^ fcftsnr. Thorntosi Kfiii^.
41,MSStnpb<:niCraT, ClA^Cf (On T>own.
31.71^ Ro^r Wiid«»i. Block twm.
Ping Pong
1 0, 740 S«t Kin Ch^ft . Bf^lTiiBf .
BJOOSftivtnWaldon, Ctrti](ftflMim
g,-[|C>0 ^;t^vanFdrk)iLriftti, Harhury-
Punchy
»&e.000 l/.Li^ol Bradley, BlAnvUt
ZSe.iOO AUii jAQ]liMdii. W4lv4rhaTnploFi.
Raid
aJlSjCf^ WlllLam JftMlriJii. CrBiwLbftgbcin.
L902.09a Bryan Jhhudb, CI«V*<lon.
I .ii2,+SQ INilor Brady. Fomlfrlrari
lyj.LHae Cra«an& Taylor, BAm Kli|br3ds.
131 JOQ Rornie Agnew, tJuvuuwL,
200,300 jAAt^Ei ftaprjp, CiiWIiMTUl.
it««|eILald
33,700 SEBphecL C^i£iy, Bnlh,
32.«1W tuv C won . RugvLiy.
.iO,$4Ci ^tialq^t RuuJ, Align.
Stboteoj
;^l^ 1>UD Aridiew Baxi^ii, -ScnmlhoTpe.
39.000 SluiTvn DuiadaJA, ScuJ^thorpQ.
Sahtc Wuir
7FS.-iM FdulEtagg. CimntluJTi.
«0^ J ^ P M4Ti»rii , Tiyttm Jfcpw.
4&I ,}50 Craig TlioinKm. Efen*5^l*i .
Sir Lancelot
«3.240 (Le^et HB}SlmoTi DflTie*, Fiity.
Ifi.^4>0 rLeiwI S8) Auvun S4(UiW4d.
WjimhAfn.
SkyfOK
1:13,300 CD EUia, HiUlhrwIc.
4lp?00 Cttfl« f fi4dmAit, Olfliiratbe*.
S^rc#ry
Mmny s^orwiflTPt ^7.000
Sorcery Plu^
77,SSi:» MdTli Wjugnor. Ptnrtc^r,
77 ,03a DividlaKttf, Clr&iicea?er.
Spanni^rman
1(30.900 E>4Tid FinUytfrn. DundM.
M,900 JulLtn Camr, F^is^T ShesT^ .
Spindlz^T
1S*S jawols JuJJMi Pl^e, Siir^nriJjiij^
ISOffiwalfi Lawrcncn STnlth No?rpoT!.
1 IM |ej wcl« toi HoplisiliiQiiU Wocri .
23,831 D^vidCdbAM-. Wythfctt*h^*f»
l3,;^]0Ripy WillLAmi, Lonjdcin.
SlajT Avenger
£f>.0S0 Nli;^ Alteon, Hdin?
17,330 Kfl-vin B r^d>^w. FiJe.
|$,«IOChrul£ir|>hei Cag, London
Stuton
30, its SKflJqttt RA»uI, A13&?.
32,1*1 1 SvanBrmiiy, EtOiam.
33,41 € RobiB-it &jL]gJ4v. lJ>^l;i0rOyg^i
313 itustilkv
I'Oite^ pM** tSrpu^ ^ sbge« sf *)ix i^^^J^
£09.930 Ion CMtOfi. tutl«l«^r
SDO.OOQCtitiJ $tiziway^ CTuppon^Eini.
StrangelDOjpi
S7.Gi07 Jtili.tA Ctior. Eajil Bhetn.
37,e63Pa"iilStagg. OTAnihuin
Super Pipeline 2
p:O,940 ::jniviri Pirtu^oas, Hyf bury.
li*,UMHLk.CiJJTinnT.
139. 3SC Ruy V/ilLinifl, Aeron
Supers LeutA
3=?,«?P B flirt Hi^avey . Iprinii-
Surrl'Toir
d.^.3i00 HF HanunifigB. Bwindcisi.
Mr,KO Palal Eduwi^di. Stavrttwqfl. |
30a.aw3 tddit rilkuu. Kxuurism.
TAnkbuateis
la 3M l.i?\ Bcfrm, &iiiiburr-EHt-t>i»ni»i.
t.35D KeNm Clsrlt*. tfctf<jre.
Geo Darigii Eltu], Slanley„
TanCilti
22M^ <2t) rodfti IMyx Joiuqa, Qnm.
CoMhay.
SO.BSS [ZOiodi) Pliul Caost, Tftlfofd-
lifU.eo^ £S;t rodd) Riefidid WdkIp.
Mabieth.&rp*.
Thing on a Spring
21,3^ Romuu Agiicw. Dov^eoi
I4JBW ^&v«;[^ Duidddtis, Scijftihisrpo.
TLl*
B9,SB0 <LiJT»?t ^fi> ft RiJcy, Ettiy MoleMy.
eajao (Lctwi aajRS D^gie^ i\«writi
ffl,IOQ(t.>9v«t m>M^jitLiL Wlul*gd, SpaJdQig.
Tturbo Stptit
S a. S Ki KSif hjiol Piiiduek, Uroadrtun .
[Way of the Exploding Fist
l^^nOChiU docker. Nuftdusip*.
lOl^.OoOPiid Hoplana^i]. Wael
Wbo DawB Wins £
jea.SfiO J^riNifi IkiytpiTirl, Cpnii^i&w^l*-
£1^,6^ Afidy Suvimandi, Aahford .
153,590 Diirigh Ward. Diuwifiun^
]^,B$a f^plten R4ggi#Ll. Wowllbcnin^e
Park.
lSa,3sg AdKiAB Lftdijh, siocuport.
lS2.000P.Tifcl l^mft. N<jf thatch.
WrlgglAif (Blaby]
^.?m D4vt<l CetMiie, Wydf^nihAnfl.
a,-4O0 Clini Eiaraway, ChlppanhuTir
Yle Ajt Kuug Fu
4@$.-$$C^pALiJJi!}lJayi, KmdJiisyCrDcn.
4ft4.^M^ Andrew CavftndLvr. Prt^rborngK
Zoiir«
&9$.990 Nt-flJ TtlflmiMM. 05. I>oini.
aia^SeO CEdin Waiter, QranllwicL,
44,1100 L#4 McM^fuMi, MKnehoiloT.
Th«. u. flt« n«T.« ih.i «n.Ht , AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 83
Get
DmifLfBrl
Rd£Lj£t Siagh fr&» London
NrW€ has cracked the PSS/Ere
cLssjitc atid veen tli« esict
game sequedc^- Fi6m what
ht tells ai it^B well Tvorth
seeing. In additioti he'^
supplied Tut with tips on
playing 4li« fiim«. Tliaato
ftl«o to mw^TY^A^ *lse wh* f *»<
tipsr Taks It aw^Y Ras|]t.
Yoy can t^o^l^<^ on the
b^di (IM* look3 good!) and
d&n"l forgef when jminpiiiig Or
falling you cm control your
directson. This m^^m you can
cMoo$^ a lading poini Don'l
bounce on them loo much
though as th^iy will eveniuaUy
bresak maidng dism imu^abl^
and losing you 10% en^tgy.
li you diop a bottle ojf wine
in ff out of the punk he wUl ke^p
walking at it. This happens vrtth
she nurs^ if you drop the
floweirs m from of her and with
some blue monsters if you da^p
the magnetr Blue monster* oan
4t!so be fioseu for a period fey
drgppmg the rsd aaucere. Don't
viasx^ theim because they are
especially u^ful in the scientiats
rooms-
To kill thfi mosiaters you
inu$« drop a spcsciiic object in
front of th^m. The orange ^^t
^oitair thing kills duck^ md
"apace invaders'*. The bottle of
acid (white with Jced fikuil and
cro^bones on it) kills clock-
work ghosiB whom heads bob
up and down and barf el robots .
Small green bwitQus kiU dogs,
clockwork gho$ts. pyramid
robots and the garden roUers.
Coloured doora are opened
using the corresponding secur-
ity pas^ while grey door^ ar*
activmod by stepping on floor
pads. To find out if a floor pad
are safe re<mll Scooter onto it, if
he bounce:^ o^ his haad it isn't
flafe.
When looking for objoota
and doors make sure you move
everything because doorg ittay
be hidderi behirid furniture and
objects Slashed under beds or
bondics. a you're having tro-
uble getting the cod^ then try
djopping a syringe in front ol a
dentist, it has i very interest-
ing eCTect.
The final room where
(hings iituaiiy drop on your
head is a tough one but with the
code and some directioii^
tboKight you*ll work it out.
Poke methods
r-expfen how \q mp^2 :h^± MupM^y
. q: ThF^ poktf3 lii^irsg two Types ot
Method 1 ■ Typfii iti Shs iistbirg.
Sew: T) d The qcLTTKi: i^p^ . Type RUN
folkjv.'e":: by piesiiiny eiiTei l-o1
:ow CiTi scr een prompt*! to i Oi^d ;hi ^
Method Z Tli^ ttips
hiSiCt^^r/iO^tii^r/TlE'ft jSviff^ft'n, com
blQcks b a:] 1 c be skipped Re w md
Thf! g^m^ '^pe Type 3n CAT tcj.-
Icjw^i by entef ^ncl pl.5y tlis i^pf!
W^tdi tt^e sore^r. ana a: m^ssagt-
will come up
Wreckless Roger
Found FILliNAMC hlvcir: ^
OK
M^hers ni-ENAME wi]^ be te^
pla^^'ti by I h^ iiaf:ie ::;: ti^t Joa<.l»'ig"
section. The next me^sii^iie tirt
appears wll h^ 'Vie main-.
FoUnaMAlNflLtblcvcik^ : OX
wh&re :hG MAINFILE will he dj:-
ferant for each garae. Nets 'he
pojfjton Ihe tap^ noimter a: whis^h
■lii^yeoond fiJ^e appears. Step the
tape ai^d rewjj^i :o j^uf bt^foifc
ThciT fK'jir.t. Typt^ in the prog rain
and RIW. it Then precs play on
21 FDR i^eTQ 15: READ d: INK
This poke arrived anonyxnoualy 1 1 4 i ^ * t
on Riy <teik and gives infinile Zt DATA 0,2, H, 28, 4,8, 17,3, fr
exiergy on the Blaby Bhool-em- 15 o jg 34 ,| ^3 2t
up. Entered using Mediod S w J ' ' , l'
11 NOSE 0:n£nORY 5?<?9
41 LOAr",6IB0
50 PD^E 8211,0: POKE 9242,0
6B CALL 6flj<
Bob Wade checks out your tips, pokes and game-busting
ploy$. The best ones win a tenner - so why not send
YOUR latest gem to: Cheat Mode, Amstrad Action*
Somerton. Somerset TA11 5AH
TOMBSTOWNf
Any One havLllg tl^Ouble with
the Ijn&oft arcade ad^entaie
will appreciate these tipii
from Simon O'Conni^lL and
Efninet Master &on from
Sidcup.
1. To memd the stiirs gel ihe
pi&c^ of stasrway from the
library.
3. To get past thq raLs. Gel the
stool trom the loniige and drop
it urider the kitchen table. Jymp
on Bable and get cheese. Take
Ram bo
Wc've 90I both tips and a
poko for Ocean's muscle
bouad psychopath. The poke
is fi^mPhil '"Ifou ciii'C keep a
q^d pblc^tfti down'^ H^owafd
fsQin Mapp^rl^y while the
tips were the pick ^f the
bunch «rft receveiTell BJid
come from Chriatiati Valeii
from Ramsgat^. The pake is
^ntDrod uiingr Method t.
1. Go to temple usmg knives.
get machjne gun and Iheii
2. Go straight up until ycm g^t to
the camp. Go right and th^n up
again until you get to the first
gate on the right haind fence
Blast ti^rough it using eJcploding
arrows.
3. Make your way over to d\e
left !!>ide ol ihe camp blasling
arLylhing that gels m the way.
Switch to knives and get POW
4. Swiich back lo exploding ar-
iQws aiid tjiasl your way north
through the tiees. When you
iQ^ch tho dAar &T&^ sw&^p \i
until you imd the helicopter atid
gel itt
5. Hc^d ^ck dovfm to ih^ O^jtip
and slightly to th« Tighl 10 find
tho landing pad.
e. L^uid and go south-#i^t to the
"coirugited' hut Utal csui't be
biowD up Switch to tejw« md
reh3ea£e it* : ::■. is. Gt> bACk
a second tui :■ : --r :iioic
the now baited rat trap to
''Beware the rata'.
3, The key m the bedroom al-
lows you to exil the castle^
4. The cross in the smdy kOls the
witch m 'Fising coiicein", al-
lowing you to gci the bailooo.
B. Take the baUocn to the bath-
room where you will float up to -^='
get the grey key.
lSSI^li^^'^P^^t''4^<y^
Ws<
5anHf^!:^t' ■■■;>j-^j^ ■ ■ ■
M*"
SSP^ >5 i^-xs s ; ; ^ i "
^1^
1^^^^^
m
^
^
prisoners.
7. Reiurn lo chopper. ct>1WE;img
Ihe while giQnade box on the
way and fly north,
3. Toc'll fly over another camp -
ignore thu and wut for your
hi»^ ¥/hicha.p'peara itfier you've
flown over a Jarge «(xpaJ)9Q of
water. While doing this you're
pursued by [he guiudup. DDn'r
-gtorry aboui dftsttvyitiq Has juat
concenuate on avoiding it
18 ma 2]t?c,ed,3A,ie,23,7&
21 DATA 2J,£b,3e,36,l0tC>\«6
,3f,2l,2d,22
31 fifllA 3b,f3,2l,48,2t,i:.46
, IB. 11, f 2, SI
,!«« lib. 35,21
51 £ATfl f2Jl,B5.2i,07,bS,ef
, 21, bb, 12,^5
?9 READ d(
lit ifi.. b3AAA
H9L34D°'%&2l4e
:59 CALL &9513
&4 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTEON tao^p-^..
Devirs Crown
kef in * p»«Uoe*. _
my I I ii^j ii jLj.^' mu
A nifty on@ Imer from Justin
Cole of Colchester lo give td-
finile time. Enier&d using
Melliodl.
11 HEWRY 4999iflODE l!LOflE''o
i':Pa^:E fc24C2,0tCftLL 5680
ROMJLD
Ii t2iexe nq timil li> Pliil
Howard's poking? OTii* time
you've g^t mfmlt« JlTeu oia Ihe
coloiufol Ocean fame. En-
tered using M«lhi?ill.
II lATA 2l,3aaz,l^ii,c3,dc
,3a, 21, 41, 22
2fl MTft 36,25,23,16,96,21,41
1% MIA I], 16,12, ed.blf 21^41
I 41 BATA bhie5»2l,l6,B2,e5,2l
ia7jbS,i5,2l
51 MTft bb,l2,e5,fl,2l,e«,&!
,lUd9,bI|f3
61 MTA c9
71 HEKORtf bZMB
81 FOR K^^ytii TO IBE37
91 READ al
lit POKE i|VflLt"ftat
128 LOfll"
III CALL ISAM
141 LOflr'',t;iifl
150 CALL UEI8
Thmg on a Spring
Emmet ivmeiteir^oi^ and Siman
O'Connell from Sldcup hav^
iMmt In tips on the Ciremlfn
evtaiy Including en* thai
weVe hmd bom iim|iteen
Cltbe^r »iiTe«ft. Thifl ia itxm if
fou hold down the key;^
THING on Ihe 1141 e screen th»
boTder will change colooj and
yoti'll bav« inf^itite oil. The
guys also have some other
aaggestioni though.
MaJEC sure yon complete
eadti s^i^en in order, starting
from the firsl floor and working
down. On each floor work left to
tight and then back ag-ain. ThU
is e^ienlial b^c&Uie S6ine oi the
presents aSlow you to go up
escalatQT^. fly off IxampoUnes
and wizz arpivid the screen m a
small space? ^^apaule.
On the iMrd Qoor, iixst
room, if you cannot find the exil
it IS stiuaTed under thi? coUa-
psible Qoojr nejcl lo ihe iwo tele-
vnsiona. Ofn the final screen
mflJce your W$.y towards the off
switch. When you collect il it
will se{ off TWO fays and the evil
goblin wiU gc( (rapped and die.
Another one from Sunon Good-
win of Middlesbrough, that gives
you infinite strength. Entered •
vsing Method 2 lo skip die first |
block of thfl program.
%^ le MODE
• 2« OPENSUrrf-
;fl£flORV fc7FFiCL
OSEOUT
31 LOAB'!'
40 POKE 5558 J
50 CALL mi
SabreWulfl
Frustrated di«c owners will
appreciate this poke Itom
Pctci: Feath ex stone of Leeds
that givc^ you infinite lives
and stops creatures
materializing: in the They Sold
a MillioD di;se veiilon of ihe
game. Jndt tfp9 In the
program^ pal the di«c in the
drive and ILUK the program
(don^t worry about the acrocfi
coTruptlon.)
11 NOBE 2
21 REHORlf 4863
Ja LDfi&"SfiEfiRF.5EF'
4a L0flrSfiEPRS,SBF%49I52
51 ^Kl 3i672,B
hi POKE 58173,8
7a CALL 49152
Who D«iras Wins U
Andy Smmondft and hi$ Pobex-
manjut from AshJord have an
iniere^rdn^ method lor beating
the all a<:tion. game from Al-
Llgata. Here it Is in hi? own
iwords.
All you t^ave to do i£ run
like h^cK zig-3Migglng like bi3lto
(SAS term for evading ihe ftalc)
to die blockhouse. Run righl in-
iide, ttun loui^ and starE fifing.
You <:An kO] all the enemy by
shooting them in the back, lega
And odmsr parts of their
anatomy.
Frankie goes to
Hollywood
Tips cm the Ocean pop arcade
adventajre haue hee« received
from David Smithers from
Hanow aind Martin Ash &ont
Basingatoke. We^ve oomlviiied
the two to give you some help
with the iitdividiLal fOoms and
BecftLom^ in the game^
1 . The STTT room. Wear the flak
]ackel and you'll be unharmed
by the bullets. The pu^e has to
be worked out logically with
each button having its own
effect. Work out which ones put
a pn7?1^ piece in and which
ones put a piece in but also
remove others.
2. The Terminal room, You'U
need a s^^oirity pass and an
undamaged Qoppf disc to aiirti-
vate one of ihe cgmpuiers-
3 Sea of Hol^. Go through each
hole in order from right to Jeff,
4- Cybernetic BreaktniL Eating a
pleasure plU here wiU halve
yoar pain or double your plea-
sure and if you stand still the
object will pass through you.
i
6. War Room. A wedding ring
protects you here,
6. Raid over Merseyside. Po-
sition the gun at about halfway
down the display and ju3t keep
firing,
7* Talkmg Heads. Keep the
Soviet flag just beneath yours
when possible. Alterrtalively
head for the lop of Hh^ game and
keep firing until the enemy
bullets reach you. 'Rien rnov^
down until the other flag moves
down wd then head back to the
lop,
8. Shooting Gallery. Shoot the
Urgets a^ quickly as possible
and remembei to let the target
reload by sinking to the bottom
of the icree^. Heads just above
the reloading area can be shot
twi^^ if you wait until they have
almost fuUy appealed before
shoohng il the first Mine.
1
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SE3 7EH
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t*l L01-SD6-0E21.
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WHY NOT COM E AN D PICK UP VaUB SOFTWAR E PEflSO WALIY
FROM OUR DISCOUNT SHOP m I STATION CRESCENT,
WESTCOMeEPAIIIC,iLACICHEATH,LONDONSE37ER.f^lGHT
OUTSIDE WESTCOM BE PARK RAILWAY STATION ON TH E
SOUTHERN REQ10N OPEN ON SATU RDAYS ONLY 1= ROM 1 D.JO Tit
-uam^
from a selective maiishot
to a gardeners year
microfile
stores 8t retrieves information
to your requirements
• Client records • Club Membership
• Music library • Stamp Catalogue
• Fixture lists • Supplier Index
£1 9.95 induding VAT & CaTriage |f 24.95 on Disk)
CORHIX SOFTWARE LTD.
•i^Kncw^m&ffh %U*wi Ref^ie^Hmtix SliiSA^. t«i f^«y»i^ £(I7«3|9S»«4
SupA SOFT Discount Software
I 1 < ■ I I
.*.7t • •?}
. P-*> H ?4
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86 JULY 1936 AMSTKAD ACTION
Gyroscope
This luting firoin Tony Hoyle of
Marple gives iitvinabjlity but
doesn't stop Oie time limit mnn-
ing aut. Also be carefu; to exit
ecxeena at "legaj'' poinis, other-
wise il will ctash, Enter the list-
ing using Method 1.
28 READ i-MSm 90: IF af)-t
THEN POKE i(,a;^=x+i:SOTD 20
30 DATA UE,k9ii32,408,fe53,
-i0,-2B,-3fl,k?,'l
Sa READ d;If aO-1 THIH POKE
bi DATA &2l,y6,&B0,&c3,lt3,
b77,ttbc,lieb,kd,Si83,&bc,^22,
t2e,tSe,&2l,t[9,StBd,tcf?,&B5,
tB7,t22,fe39,tbd,i!f5,t3e,tc3,
132,^37, bud, &fl,kel,«i:9
u CALL bseee
?0 IF »=-\i THEN a=PEEK(yD3
7>:ftETUft!«
111 IF a=-2e THEM d=FfEK{lEt
331: RETURN
lie IF a=-3e ?HEM a=PEEK(ttE£
Combat Lynx
DuielL SoAwara liave given us
p^rmisEian to print this tap^ to
disc tr^iiisfer li^tiag ot Qieir stilL-
populax action flight simuliator.
HowBTftr they a^ ibat disc
copies created with it be SOLEY
for the personal use of Iho&e
who have bought an ongmal
copy of the caasetts. You've got
KD BryaiiT of Beenham to Thaiik
for this! listing but future Lrans-
f#r? are dependant on the
agreement Of the software
house concerned.
To tranafer juat lyp<^ in the
first listing and RUN it. This wiH
prompt you to play the tepe
(m^ing aiire it's rewound first)
and will automatically aave it to
disc. Now type in .ji^:^
39): RETURN
128 RETURM
A gi^al poke iiom Sij[ion Good-
win of Middieabrough that pre-
vents ihe car from crajMng. Uie
Method 2 to g^t pasl iJie first
block of the program. Note that
dfivijig iiito some itreasf will
corrupt thQ *i;:teen but if you
know wh«r« you're going you
can gel back to (ha *3yipl*y pro-
per withom d;ra:3hlng the game
completely.
10 HQM B
21 ffl>£»[]iJT*S(iiN»EB08^ U99!
lieting and save it to disc under
the filenaine "LYNX". To nin
the game Irom disc jual type
HUN-LYNX.
10 nQi)E 1
21 ;TAPE.!M:nEnaRV 5630
31 LOAS^fWlK'
40 SAVE'CM',b,5b3i,327A7~
563B
10 NODE 1
20 KEHORV 5b30
38 LOAD^COR'
58 CfilL 32l3g _.x. ?V ^#
4a LOAD* 'bV 4? 152
50 L0AIf'!cM28ee
^0 L§AD'!d%rW
78 FOR n=0 TO \^\m 31.0: NEK
T (I .
&fl l0ftS)*^e\nif.2
90 POKE 1908, Is POKE 1909, BtP
CKE 1?18,0:POK£ l9n,8:P0p(E
1^12,0
100 CALL 1810
P^B^BHK'^
uis sc^oond
5i«^
A^nother Phil KDward poke*
that gives infiaite energy to^
the frasiT^teii Siioro detective.;
l!'& ent€ri?il using Method L
11 DATA 21,21]|Sa«^|C9|C3,N
21 REnoRY &7iee
41 POKE I7i53,3
50 FDR »^b3fll TD k3fl?
40 READ il
7a POKE ^.mrt^+ai
B0 N£n
90 CALL 67530
FA Cup Footbal
This great cheat froni Ssttl Whir-
tinghajfn o*^ Gi easby • allows " y o ti
to jr^JslacblirfGrpQoi wittixi K^^iw
otyouT chjpici? ^nd giv-Q t^^Tr\
LaverpcDj's: Fcim: The ztiimb-^rs
in Ike daia statement ax^ th^
chai^ter codes of the. capilal
lelters (^5 to 90) iouisd in ap-
pendix m pages 3-S of the 464
q^er manual C^^rr^n[^/ ?h^ leatr.
m the si atcniont is Wifi.\bl^on
(PHaffaefrc « £d). The nfiw tesLTu
must be nine diaracaer^ long ac
if your team sa shorter then pui
m ^fp^cea ((;haTapligr nombej
'Si% Load Uri^ poke ^ing
Method 2 to skip die first pine
b!tocks of ihc pTQqram,
la HEHORV «9?jL0»'"
28 m i=nH TQ 9412
40 Mfl 8?, 73,77,66. 74,^9,48
51 CALL 3:^36
PRIZE WINNERS
Ttm £10 winners this month
were a lough choice but here
arc ihc victoiioua. f^aujit Singb
from Lotkdon NWS gets a lennef
for his Get Dexterf tipSp Siroon
Goodwin from h^ddlofibrough
gets £10 for hia Last V8 and
I ChiSw pokes while the third
\ prize 13 spliL between Emmet
Masterson and Simon O'Connell
from Sidcup foi iheir Thing on a
Spring and Tomt^owne tips.
We don't ha^e Emmet and
Sinvon's addresses though &o il
they would tike lo contaci u£ in
' writing we'll be able to send
I theni a fiver each.
-^?
Problems Problems
Gaff of the ruDnth last month whs
on the Highway Encounter
poke. Line 140 should have
read:
140LOAD"!".^O40
For those of you who have been
trying to enter the Covenant
poke from issue 4 on our cover
cassottc r-vG got Bome bad news
- it doesn't work. It did work
with the original version of the
game bui not with ttue one we
gave av^ay. If anyone has got a
poke for our version we'd be
delighted lo see it.
WeVe had a n^ixnber of in-
quiries this mon^ from people
asking for help on specific
games. Unfortunately we azen^t
al>le lo make direct replies to
these because of the time invol-
ved. We print just about every-
thing we can get our hands on in
theses pages youll jusE have to
keep your eyes peeled for
someone giving help on your
part icuUr game.
ms^
AMSTltftD ACTION JULY 1986 87
CO O
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iPECTRUM48K
how y8b fiou) M xmo GOTHflM an
I flNDTfifWOmOOfTfff
I TiTIIMMfc „ ^'ss:^jr __
Ocean Software Umrtad,
6 CerttraJ Street, Manche^c^ ri2 &NS.
Tefephone: 06^-^32 6631
TeleK: 66"?977 Occam G
TM ioKiycart^TrK^BfiBflicrfDCIkiiiKxinsL^dni
XiB D ' _3_r_ J~i - — - — ■ - ^
AMSTRAD
8-95
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TOP SECTION
LEFT SECTION |aiQ|Q|
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We've recoiled Ion Boffifi from lh« depthf of deep
space and his Elite ploying guide fo bring you the low
do^n on Electric Dreams all time classic game. As
well OS o mdp showing ho^ mony j^^els are on eoch
screen there's in depth study of the more interesting
areas of the gome ond some great playing tips fhcft
wll help both the beginner and the advonced player
progress.
Starting out
Due lo the ]n\iTLCi:vsc si^o o\ fbe
lask ahcid Tht? prog jammer has
kindly spla! the game uUo four
diffcroTit sections, The
b^giimeis scKlition ia for di£~
ccveriJig how thft uontrols
haiidlG whih^ ihq fc^t m the
"real 'qaiue.
t find rhai tJit* bottoin pari of
Ihe map IS oa^iqal (reJafrvc^ly
anfW'tr)^ nvaillly because it
guidos ygy round most of l^ie
fOUite and me^i jewiels: are easy
io get al. Alter this J tackle the
sectott Io the I(»*t of the alart
room. Some of ihj£ la t^asy bui
othsiR v^rge on the impossible.
Finally you should tiy your hand
;it The ]Atgt^ (op si^ciion where
even il s^^enorvi look impossible
Io gyt 10 you should try io ^^
V^
Switch
After goitmg th& cor red
switch IO remove the ramps may
Od the bl^nk squares until m the
neKl room.
c^t^
^.3^^-^
>(
I
Go rrom 1 fo 3 to 5 to S
where you should flick the
switch ^inci go up the lift. GeT off
lift and full speed north bounc
mg off Ehft ttampolinea on 6 and
5^ When ill 3 go into 2 and use
the lamp in 2 to avoid the deact-
ivating swiiche^ on iho em
door. Go into 4 where the Qoox
tio tonger diaappoars so that
you can got ihe iowol.
>
y^
'■■^\.
!i>
In this arcade comedy a mJKJ-mannered
dfver. Gormless Gordon is sel upon by
buxom bjlging Myrtle, the Mermaid with a
face that sank a thousand ships .
Thrilt to the music, ouake at the terrors of
Ihe deep, boldly go where no man has
gone before, and discover hidden wonders
that will make your knees quake and have
you reaching tor your scuba gear.
FEATURES
An extensive underwater landscape
inciuding a wrecked ocean liner,
submarine caverns and a sunken city-
Numerous puzzles to solve and obiects to
collect and use.
A "nutty ' m us leaf soundtrack which
continually changes lo accornpany %rtle
through the varyjng locations.
Detailed fully animated cartoon style
graphics in full colour.
Electric Drfiams Software
23 Pond Street, Hampstead
London NW3 2PN
Available for:
Commodore 64 Cassette
Commodore 64 Disk
ZX Specif urn A6K
Amstrad CPC Cassette
Amstrad CPC Djsk
fE9.99)
ittAM)
{mm]
mm)
iZ\AM)
ELECTRIC DREAMS SOFTWARE, 31 CARLTOPJ CRESCENT. SOUTHAMPTON, HAf^^PSHtRE SOI 2£W, TEL: (0703) 22%9A
Control
I don/t much caur^ for the key-
board control and in the way of
a joystickp one with auck^r^ on
the baam m very useful. Thi3 Is
so th^t you can h^vo a spare
hand to operate the space bar.
Th* joystick needs genUe
manipiilation rather than heav-
ing around and if yoxt caji f &t
through the mggly bits just
beneath Ihe start you're weU on
the way „
The ^e button accelerates
Gerald faster than normaJ. lilce a
tmbc cutting in, a^d come^g into
its own on sti^ep slopes and
jumpa. Usiiaily on a. slope push-
ing up it will maJce you sit still
but by pressing fire you can
progie^ up it at a fair rate. The
apace bar acts as a halt on fric-
tional surfaces but wHl cost you
a lot of time while you'ra using
it, and on very steep slopes
even lihis won't stop you sliding
down.
TliA word Spindixzy
Once up on the letter just go for
all Qm switches and il should be
fairly straightforward. A warn-
ing though one bit is leaUy
na^ so fry lo avoid Gerald
malong Like a leniming.
Jumptng tactics
On ihis screen there is little
room foi run-upa and jumps. To
do all these jumps, steady your-
self on the square before the
ramp and slowiy drift to the
back of the Ktuare. Full speed
up Ehe ramp with the fire button
down to make the jump. Eitlier
hi( the space bar or accelerate
in the opposite direction to that
in which you're going, depend-
ing on whether you can alfoid
the Eime loas.
Switches ond puules
These are the key to the whole
game Ajid where the puzzling
comes in In several pl&ces the
problem is getting somewhere
without the switch being deacti-
vated by a cancelling switch. In
some pl&ces a rai^d border
path is helpful.
llie switches are obvious as
a means to turn on several lifts
but the other less apparent lose
IS in revealing and building new
ramps and routes. Usually if you
do get stuck at a dead end It
requires the use of a swit^ to
buOd a lamp, A dassio case is in
the upp«r section where there
IB a cross separate from the
main map. For this you need a
switch, which is fairly obvious
because of the clue 0^ren. How
you activate the switch m easy
enough but hpw you get back to
the light place without deact-
ivating it is ano&^f matter - it is
so obvious as to be infuriating.
Raised section
beyond Splndlzzy
To get onto it find a solid aval
switch PI the bluo pyramid and
access via raised bit from black
pyramid.
Reaching the
crescent moon
Having made it through tli*
tow^r section you cw get to the
bit that connects to the column
ai eight screens. To get onto the
column try to go round the
rais«d border and when on the
room adjacent to the column
push forwards and a lift wiU lake
you up,
tf you have been (his far you
will notice thai it spells out Haw-
kwind. One* at the top go to the
lift and gmi onto the raised plat-
form. Co west and stop on the
line wher^ the bsjcfc slop starts.
Go full speed ease until you
speed off the edge. Then you
wiU bounce your way along
alternate icreens. If you Jfind
youiuU nearing the east edge
of any screen hold the joystick
left and press lire. Much the i
same method worla for aiming
Huthirom the moon.
White pyramid
NE jflwol needs ZH UM switches from north entrwtcf,
NW jewel needs ^^ J^ switches from wejrt entrance.
SW jewel needs [7^ [~g switchei from south entrance.
SE jewel needs [; S 9H switchefl from east entrance.
Tower section
Start at Bl go to Al fhen A2.
Take lift up at A2 and get j^wel
al AL Uo to 62 and Qick switch.
Go to A3 and get tilt down. Get
oft al mid level and go to A4
then M then &3. Go wea! oB the
ledge at E3 io C3 then D3.
Switch solid and right half solid
oval« and return lo C3. Go up lift
and go to 03 ihen DS. Chmb
ramp to C2 ihen r
C3,B3,B4.B6,A5.A4,B4 and omo
the nexE section.
Hofdp. AMSTRAD ACTION JULY 1986 95
uy youR
SOFTWARE
FROM yOUR
ARMCHAIR!
Let Amstrad Action's unique mail order service do the walking*
By th« time you We reached tbU part of 4h« magazine^
cHdn^^s^ QrQ yciu^cf )ove te g«t your hcuridi on sem^ of
the seftwow weVe rt^vlewed. And thcif^s [t#&t what you
can dov Our mcii( order service <tJlow$ y^u lo order
virtually ANY piece ef software for the Am«trad
mkfos reviewed m the fnagairfie. Whot** mtsre yow
can ^ctve yourielF a goad $ym oF money on shop
prices AND quatify for ^reat free gifts.
Hey, it's CI wonderful way to buy yovr softwarel
SUPER-GIFTS
Here's the great range of brts and pieces you can get FREE with your
order - most of them would normally cost £8-10! If your total order
is over £15 yoLi select any one you [jke. If it's c?vef £30 you can
select ^rty TWO. Just enter the numbers of the gifts you want^
together wtth your second preferences, in the order form.
1. KUNf^FU/ NUMBERS
Two grea( Ocean ^en-es on one tope,
^hv^n aw#y wllti tire Cttristmai Isiue of
A^ If yog mH$€C 'em then, get 'em
r^wCPC 464/6*4/61. afi
9* THE COVENANT ^ OEmOS
T>>i^ Eupe f^ittu?*^ Oft tiw cover of okif
M^v i&^e n contains a fuH verskjn Qf
tne AA^i^wtd P$S saff^, tosKl^er ^inh
demoi C4 foof other pss programs.
Supplied ^^th instoicoons fof transferf-
ing T>ic C&vtnant to disc. CK
464/6M/<iie8
3. AMEmCAN FODIt ALL
An imp^-essi^* sriTiLlatlon
AmsoffArgus - CK 464 only,
from
4h CHUCKIE Elad
HugeL;^ addictive, hlgh-^corlna platfonn
3em€.CP<: 464/664/6128.
9. ELECTRO FREOOr
Firantlc humo^foys
4 64/6^4/61 5B.
iun.
CPC
6, HUNCHBACK
Ocean/Afpsoft crsnslatlon of the
a -cade classkL CFC 4£4/6«4/61 ^9
7. LASER WARP
Smoott^, coiourfiti, classic stMSOt-eir-
up.CK 464/664/61 Sa
«> CLASSrC ADVENTURE
Ttie gfcflt edvcmufe irat staTred :t am
CPC464/*64/6lM
9. pyjAMARAMA
the Nrit Of MiKrojcn's ctialleiiging
Waify sames. CPC 464/664/6 1 ^S
ID. MASTER CHESS
WoUhy muitl-icvei che^s pfogram. CPC
464/664/6128
II.SPACEHAVfKS
Version of the shoot^cnVup Oalajdans.
CF*C464.
1 B, SPANNERMAN
f^anic action a$ yod try w stoo lh«
water-flow. <:K 464/664/6 1 38.
mmmmm^mmm
► FREE gifts
► FAST delivery
^ FAT discounts
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VOUCHER
Hf uif vi»h titinn inn E&.DD-
^mu. isn't ^cuEhtrpai ardtr^
VOUCHER
For nil w-lih tT^in 1' cm C 1 Q flQ
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VOUCHER
VOUCHER
Fdf iiHivtith Drdfra dhp tul.fii
k
FREE!
with any order over £5
A C15 data cassette containing
hiSh- quality tape specially desig-
ned for computer users. It comes
tn a library case with blank inlay
card.
FREE!
With any order over £1 5
your pick of any one of the games
featured in the Super-gifts box.
Most woufd normaHy cost £8-10!
FREE!
with any order over £30
A blank 3" dfsk OR your pick of
any TWO of the games featured ir
th€ Supcr'Sifts box.
HOW ORDERS ARE DEALT
WITH
l^m«fcrad ActtOTT MmU 0»d*r Ik ran
whd gel« niQi* znuU in a dnf tlLftn
CDkOil p««pN gel *aeh yeiiirt
tJiaitik yawi OTdar irtcllld««
I^FQ^'FAfTU wiiimli HUT SflfipiJi^TS
canooi get hold of Tot v^ine ir«^
&son. Sues <liE«patcrh?« til j^ekaf A«
by Urut ctAilA mall wltbib two or
*hr** working da'fm nf jr»c*iTfin^
the 09r^«¥l. ffe*^*|iai*, yo^ ejua
p^cel ^QDi A wc«k til 1& dmyi
iif E e J 4 z^eiin g .
If it*B dei^'^frd beyond tllAl
li lamporarily UnATAiUMlt. In
WONT wp«d t&lxLfi¥ npH (111 f*et
t^e Fvver&e ~ plltm« Clil* tr • ¥«r^
tHnc-Cionfamlng.) U 4 l^^g €t«lfty
were likely W#*4 14^1 ^on know.
PLEASE BEAR IN MIND
L TIl» fket tllAt ^ iita^aif^ i^ Tt^
Ticwed in Um rfuk^o^ne d4«t aot
gwviaie« Ui mY«tLiilii1lty sinc#
BEFOltf It Hat iMTtlMlly h*9ti
2, Wfr U4 h}ftf#7 l« t^*fA3id yd^r
Older at abt tinve np t« tlt& d«-
«^(c]i of tte g«od*- iat t^^cAUM frf
Ibv potsilsiliTy of c^opyijtg iofl-
win, no TfrfBUd or «kchaiig« to ui
lifrTBJJlrt p4#c« of iofbff^axfr e4»
1^ giT«ii aHer Uiey iMive bAvii d*-
rpmtob^d. Softwiji^ wliicli dc^«B not
lo*^ m«y b« t«»jn#d f^r A r^-
plBCHiesii CB4S4ttt Of d£4c CO&'
IftiaiRg th» i4.frt« ftolt^ue #ith«f to
m.* or dLf^Uy to ifae *o1tirai«
3^ W4i try to b« At ACdirAta ai if «
cam milh 4*t«ilB af pric*, compaH-
blJtty uid diBli ftVftUiMUtT, bfti
CKDVOt «cefpt ]|jiMUly l^r mmj
4i¥Ori ttiAl £f*«ti in.
OVEftSEAS READERS WELCOME
Itftid*« tn tlic R#piLbtlc of
IJ|£LAKII C4n ord«r a.B.j of thmd
goodt ill IfetQ «Affie nit«t At Bxill^h
lira dorm pt«vld«d lh*1 |MiVmfriil i*
made ±ft ^ttndti S^tetlMlf^ U yem.
wtata to p*y isy If I ill ^^oPX^i* you
tmuftt #^d » 1R1.5I3- itLircliajgfr IN
fnrrent exchugo n1* ^ theit'-a
wh4i ii cottc bt td paf la |rotaf
chetpiev or postal frrdvrp^
Re«d#n «li#wll«rc lA
EUROPH mast add £1 per sofhware
Item tQ the coil of thntT ord^r.
P^ft^^s^^ mmit hi La pom^d*
SteKld&f .
Sefidif^t<>nnp*usEKivwier'S lo" AAIftallOfclerJiPift*wo*dDrive_Soin^rlon.Sflit^er^l,TAil 6JP
•^j^t>-
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MAIL ORDER FORM
Name.
.Telephone no, (ii po$s).
Addrass.
■ I ■■■■■■c-i-r-i-V'-i
kk***ma-i 1 1 1<4 h-k>ii4-+.--!-4-k-. . . kk k** it'^tkh*
.Postcode
Machine owned: UCPC464 GCPC664 L_CPC5128 "'PCWa256 nPCV/8512
ijiior 11^ t^4^r#fi§f jpu vnfSn |o pt^tf M it* spfl£M tit^VfU. X^fi^m 'PRI^E fou ifvui! vtlw II4* -hiH rvtsl prio*. i pwi w^wX ifwr* Am liwt ?t4in^
... ..■
;;- 0; SOFTWARE TITLE . .:
SOFTWARE HOUSE 1
JISCvCASS PRICE
1
2
3
4
5
PRE'OISCOU
MT TOTAL
n £15-1 9 99. 1 eiK^os^ a £i discount voucher and diaim f r« gill nmnbef , (S^Cnorid choiM-__.)
^ C20-20 99. 1 endos^ a £2 disooyrJI ^^otcher andcfain (ne^ djltnurrtter {&$c::ond cfidjca t
^ £3-3-40.99. 1 endDsea £3 disQ3ur,t vCK^Chei andd^im ;3i 3*diS0' OR Tree gills' Nos. aJT<l - fSrf dhdkce ^ .)
[~^i Over £SD. I ^ndCM a £5 discounl vouchsrand daim a 3" disc' Ofllroa gifts* Nos. and , [3rd cfeics . _.}
TOTAL P AY ASLE FO:R MAIL ORDER i-PRE-D]SCOUNTT07ALminu&tfi5cauntJ:[£^
Aad tixli f4S^I to |bd *ni9ynt pi^U« an any s^4CM»I oHofe w44f td «i rivwM 4n^.
Save £5!
ARNOR WORD-PROCESSING
Fantaatle discounta on Pxd1«k1^ Piomergeaod Proapetl
CPC 464/6e4/G128 + PGW S256/8512 Ohotpell only}
Save £51
VORTEX VALUE
A»f TWO cassette ft only £12.90
JlnT TWO dlscB oBly £22.90
GPC464/£&4/612a
Three CtKies in rooeiil tuonOls Vortei have
r^le^aed doftwaie on the Airtstrad, Thiee
tweff they have won chticai and popular
acclaim. The gaines «re Hi^hwny Encoun-
ter, TLL, and Atr&n Highway. You cam pick
any rwo of ihem for a snip.
Highway EncoimfQr ha* been de-
scribed by some ^ the mo^j Eiddtctive
game they've ever played. You have to
guide a TerimHron aJong a hazard-^ed
highway by eontr oiling a. diUek-iike Vorton.
Ahen Highway is the lollow up, taking
tbe gamfi idea several siagen further and
m^kmq it harder flEill to fiiiifih,
TL/i^ the odd one oui, puts you m
control or a Tornado Low. Level aircraft
irymg to bomb Laxget? dotted aroand a 3D
landscape which acxolls around the screen
ao smoothly you won't believe it.
AH thiee game^ notiftaily cost £flJS on
c.ie»ei;e aJid £13-95 on disc, so you can gee
out Apeciai offer is vBry special indeed.
Arnof s v*rord-proce«3ii\g program Proiexf
has established ilseU as eji outstanding
piooe of software otfermg CPC owneis a
rang« of profesaional features totally unex-
pected at the price.
It is al90 astonJAhJngly fast. Jumping to
different par is of a teat file, search-and-
replace operadone, moving blocks of lejct,
re-formatting - all are done almoat
instantly.
Two additional programs vastly in-
crease its power; PrcMejrge^ oflers a Ml
mail-mejge facility allowing you to carry
out long print runs with details of each
individual document or letter Automatically
customised,
PiaSp^U is a fastn multi-featuied spel-
ling checker which comes complete with
30.000 word dictionary. UnKkq ProMor gie it
can be used with other word-pjrocesaor
programs such as VFoj^tar.
Now you can buy a^y of these
programs at tB off Ihe normal asking
prices! So, for example you could buy
P^ot^Mt on disc for just £21.96 (or on cass-
ette for ]ust £14.iS). Or you might prefer to
go for the ROM versions {which load inst-
antly and give you extra memory space for
your documents]. These will co3l jtist £34,95
for Pretext or £Se.95 for PioMerg^- (How-
ever you will need a separate EOM board,
not available Through this offer.)
For fuU details of Ihs^e super-low
pric^. refer to Ehe order form on thi^ page.
SPECIAL offer;
SPECIAL OFFER FORM
Fill in your narne.actdreBsand machinslyp^ on the reverse orihisfomi. Then ptacea Itck next to those ilema
you wish to order.
3. Vortex value
Tick TWO of the titles on
cassette for £12,90,
n Highway Enc, cass
\Z. T.Ll, cass
r~. Alien Highway cass
TjckTWOofthe titles on
disc for £22 .90.
[J Highway Enc, disc
n T.LL disc
Q Allen Highway disc
4. Mexico '86
LI Cass only. £7.95
TOTAL N UMBER OF ITE MS TICKED
TOTAL AMOUNT PAYABLE ON SPECIAL OFFERS
1 . A rno r wo rd-proc essin g
D Protexl cass £14.95
□ ProtextdiscC2l.95
n Pretext ROM £34 95
n Prospell disc £19.95
G Prospell ROM £29.95
_] Prospell PCW disc
□ Promerge disc £1 9.95
□ Promerge ROM £29.95
2. Batman
LI Cass £6.95
U Disc £12.95
5. Gargoyle gasper
TWO cass titles £13,90.
L Dun Darach cass
r~ Marsportcass
( '; Sweevo's World cass
Li Heavy on the Maglck
TWO disc titles £21.90.
L] Dun Darach disc
LI Marsportdisc
I I Sweevo's World disc
LI Heavy on the Magick
6. Rand. Access Database
□ Disc £26.95
D
I ^ncbsd a cheque or po&tal order for tfiis amout plus th& total payablo br mail ordor on th^ mvofso of Uiis
lorm. The payment Is mide out to FUTURE PUBLISHING LTO.
PiEASE NOTE
tmmt of citf maU OTd%t ««li«m*. Yon
cii,n.nol u«t ih^ ToucJisn 4& lit*
titaU oidmi |33ge to obtaJii Further
dJflccFtiDli And &Mf gift* - w«*tv
linftdy IrnQiCfeeil off the m««f w«
c«ii Bqw«»*i if fOQ pr*f«, yett
mM-f tnd*i Mbj Df tliE jteznv pn this
ntlCE C^ongli ihfl ordJnuTf maJQ
pA^tt. Tfln eaa thffn nw %kv reltT-
ut VOiiCh«ir uid, U thfe pa^ice Is
CT«r tlS claim a Frt^tL fii\. ThJt
BAsld moke b«iib« ifyifu anr prdrr-
Save £2!
BATMAN
Only £6.95 cuip £1£.9S diK
Holy smoke! This fanlaatic Oc^an ^ame ^
going at £2 qfl tht normaJ price of £ft!
c««ii £14.95 disc. Having won a hoi, h^ Jl
f flve review in om May issue and ihe cofr
slot of June, it juat derEvandB l^ b^ bOugTti.
The beat 3D graphic:^ ym. Masffir
playing of ea. Bamboo^ieng ptisles,
liui for il^ RoblJii I
Save £2!
MEXICO '86
€FC«Vi»V*Ui
only £7.99
ever bwra ftnilabla on mail ord&jr, has
altiacted somethjiig of a cuil folio wriiig ai
t)i« dunkmg persoft's rootbftll ma^ti^eineiu
iimolAEidrL
[| placM you ill Bobby Robson's ^ocs
M you try to lead t^e EhgUnd team from
th& i^jre-qualtOcaijon slage right thiougli to
viciory in Mexigo. You have numerous
d«cisioR3 to take indudiiig x&^m selection,
tacliea pl^Lniimg and subaitlunon tiimng.
The pAcka,ge, wliicli uidudcfi a ao-pags
booklet, normally cso^ts £3,93,
What bettei way of celebraimg the
World Cup vimunef than mdulging m a
Uttle trial ot Htrength of youi own?
iPlmam Ml©, ihu pr&duffl hm rl<^ 4»ocLitioit
wiKh FIFA n0t with the yS Cold uti« IVdr|<rf Ojp
Save
•X-
ccts*
oM^
»^**
ais^as
'^..^^^.^■^
ss^<r^->' '
Sii<r=^«*
s5^
Save up to £6!
GARGOYLE GASPER
Any TWO »■■«»« J a>e £13.30
Any TWO discH Just £21.90
GFC464/664/61Ee
Gargoyle h*ve proved ihemsalves to be atyla 3D grap
one of Uie groaieat mdppcndent software tertaining anir
haeisqs aupporting th^ Amstiad micros. Finally Ih
Now by picking two of their very special input adventu:
games you can save yomreelf a packet. DUN a second smm
DAJIACH was theii first release - a huge Three of t
arcade-advonture with Celtic atmosphere, on cassette an
AARav^. out being 5w
Then came MABSPORT, ano^er big cass. £1895 c
arcade adventure with stuuming animadon order, this ofl
but this tiifie a futuristic location. It won the ecom^mic w
AAMastiirgainja slot. oompany^s t
SWEEV^O'S WORLD leatured mhrnate- software.
Btyle 3D graphics, wacky puzzles and en-
tertaining animation. Another AA Rave.
Finally Ihere was the inndrpative text
input adventure HEAVY ON THE MACICK,
a second smnning Mastergame.
Three of the games normally cost £9,93
on cassette and £I3,9€ on disc, ihe odd one
out being Sweevo 's World which is £6.95
cass. £1395 disc. Bui whichever two you
order, this offer provides you a superbly
economic way of checking out this
oompany's dhaUenging, stale-or-the-art
software.
FFERS
o
Amstrad Action
Readers' Charts
Bitm Futi anc^ again hung on tc> iff position gf Nymb«f
One with two newcomers^ from la*t month, Gmt Dmxter
citid ^indfjjy m hot puriuit. It has been <i gaod month
for fi«w entrie$ wtth four gam#s in lotor making their
debut in the charts. Could one of these become neji^t
nionth'* Number One? Or wiU fffjte sHU be there fof ihm
fifth month rynning?
The Seriouf Softwore chart looks very simlliir to
iii»t month ^s with the top two prqgramt hoMiftg on to
their favowed positions. Laser B&stc has &iipped out
completely a^d been repioced by The Qyift, which hoi
r*turtied after spend ing a montti out of tho top len» but
remember that w« need you to send in your votes and
only these eon determine whot will hoppon In next
month's chartn.
The VoHng
System
i'QT anyone new to our fiiaie-oT*
i;hi@-tii f voting fornix; j^d sysiem
or anyo"^ STILL Ldvniy inj^W^
here's anoiher run dowri on whiit
10 so ST^ how to do II
Yriij !uivc i^r your dispcusaJ a
TOTALS 10 votes fbre-ich chrin.
Th&se cat* be spin upany way you
like on kip to five fcitles but Elie
nitmher fif voifis you give to the
OtfyorenE Eii;t^a ijiU!^( add up to 10.
For t^Kxnipii^. on fhe gaine
chari VQU could qive diJ JO voJtf
tc A sin^de q,^iriO. Or ycti could S
votof. to one) yiim*^ 2 to another,
and 1 eiiclJ tc ihro*^ otIigtjs. Yoil
iii;5! !ia ve ro ^Ho^m y<jut IC vote?
ic- reil^a your preferences as ac-
oirdiply -IS pDS£^ible, What you
CANT do i& giv** five differeni
gsmes 7 OJ 8 votes ^^sch Thar/s
gr**f?dy.
Ojie fiiiThf^r '"hing yoii cer-
tdnily can't do is send in pho:o-
copics of ^h« icini Th^rr have
been anempfs at jiggcry pukety
J EL the priET so we wani to avoid
fciny posv^ibilify of il happening
ligdni
SERIOUS
SOFTWARE
TOP 10
1.(1) Grapliie Adventure
Creattir
2.<2) AMX Mouse
3.(8) Ea^si-Amitwor<l
4.(5} Mint Office 2
5.(3>MlniOtflce
Dat^Uie (7 I %>
e.(4) Ta^word
Z.(-) Discovefy
8.(7) TranBHiAt
PrtdQUTiUtiBip.l^-^ih
9.(fi) Elcrctric Studio
Ligbltiftit
10.(*)The Qiiill
GAMES TOP 20
1.(1) Elite
Fir#budaLS%j
2.(20) Get Deictev
3.(10) Spiadi^Exy
£l«ctr;c DfediTLB (I.B'^)
4.(5) Who Dares Wins II
5.(2) Yie Ar Kung Fu
8.(3) Sorcery Wlu^
7.(4) Spellboiuid
8.(8) Highway Encoisnter
9.(«) Batman
10.(-)The Covextavit
ll.(lfi)Rambo
12.(9) Tan Ceti
13^(8) Sorcery
14.(1 1)TLL
15.(1 3)3D Grand PvIk
Ain*0fir|.7%)
18.(7) Sweevo's World
Gai^yle Oaxass (1.5%)
17.(12)MarEpQrt
QaxgoV^P Gain EH 1 1 .5' : :
18.(lS)Starion
19.(-) TlilBg on a Spring
28.(>) Gontttiando
100 JULY 1986 AMSTRAD ACTION
THE ALL-IN-ONE ACTION
FORM
This form has been created l^y the Save-Vour-AA-From-Being-Overhacked-Department. You can
use this side of it to register your high score claims and counterclaims and, most importantly, place
your votes for the software you think is greatest. Then you can use the other side to enter our
Reader Survey and get a chance of winning some software. Ail without doing any more damage to -
the mag than neatly clipping out one otherwise useless page. Clever, innlt? Remembertoftll in
your name and address in the box on the other side.
High-score entry
I would like to legistei my lugh-sco£«a in the following Amstrad gatnes:
GAME SCORE TIME TAKEN
1.
2..
3,
LEVEL
I pfondflc these aje genuine seoies achieved without using cheat methods.
Signed
High-score clialleiige
I hereby challenge the foUowbg bigh scores piinied in Amsirad Action
GAME SCOKE
L
2.
I \h\nk the suore(sl impossibie becauise;
IGame cKart vetiisg form
1
GAME
IwmUiU
m to Tole for A* fbllewtny gune(«):
SOfTWAKC BOUSE
NO. OF VOTES
*
%.f.
4. ..
t _
To<«l '
bobiJmt of TOtn ^ 1ft
I Serious software voting farm
I iMivId lilw to ifKA% for th* followiiig piecoCi) of %«iQw •oAwim'
1-
ntOGRAM
■
SOnrWAllE HOUSE
NO. OF VOTES
a
%:._...:.::
A^
$- — - ■
1
To<«i I
MMlwr of TiOtM ^ 10
AA READER SURVEY
You could win £25 of software!
Once again, dear readers, we appeal for your help. We need you tell us some more about yourselves and
about your thoughts on Amstrad Aclion, Yourfiiling in this questionnaire will help us make the mag what
you want it to be — and H could also win you some free software. The senders of the first three
questbnnalres we pull out oJ the box on July H}th will be sent fabulous AA wouchers entitling them to E25
of goods of the if choice.
Incidentally the only reason there is a space for your name arxJ address is so that we know who to
send the prizes to. You don't have to fill in those detail and needless to say the answers you give will not
be used for any other purpose than to help us build up a more accurate picture of our readers,
Having completed the questionnaire, you may also want to fill in the voting forms on the back of this
page. Then send it to: Action forms, Amstrad Action. Somerton, Somerset TA 1 1 5AH. ?
Name......
Addreaa.
ll4B4i-l+l'l h^ii^t'iiT-
Ags UndarlS
SeK __M _F
Occupation
1316
"si-so
.Postcode,,
£1-30
-l-4-r»' + 4 l-i-4 + 9i4- £f tf>4-i hH h rif id-i-Tr i
1 . Whal computer do ymj own?
CPC464 _CPCG64 _CPC51£&
_PCW52&5 _PCW8512
2. Which of th« fdllowltig do you hs vi??
Green-screen monitor pbsTVmodylalQf
3. How long havsyou owned your compuler?
_0-3 fnofiUis 4- 6 monlbs ^7-9 months
10-12 months Over 1 2 months
4. Which o( the following have yon bought?
Extra dSsc drive _Pfinter __Sefial inleriace __Modem
^Mou&e Light pen _flOMboand joystick
S. Which of the lollowing do you plan to buy in 1h» nenl 12
months?
Ejftfadi$c drive __Printof __SeriaJ Interface ___M&dBm
_ Mouse flight pen _ROMbMrd ^JoyfilkSt
^RAMpack
6, fioughly how much have you spenl on enlertainmenl
Mftware in the last thr^e months?
_gi^der£lO _£10'20 _£2Q-30 _C3Q-40 _E40-50
_E50-100 _Ov&r£lOO
7. Roughly how much hftv* you $penl on »riou9 •ottware in
the tasl Ihr9# monlh^?
UrxfefCiO _£10^20 _£20-30 _e3CM0 _€40-S0
£50-100 Over £100
8. Whal ar^ the most common uaea of your coiriputer (lick up
to threej?
Gam^s _^Word-proct)ssing __ Prog ram ming in Basic
_Pf og f amming rn othor languagos Com m ufiicafofis
AccQunb _Gfaphiei ^Husic __Data^tof ag*
Oihof (specify)..
9. What ara your main reasons for buying Amdr id Action {lick tip
Id thf M)7
^^Gamorovtews _^Senous MftwaiB mview$ ^Type-ins
^Adventure section Choal Mode RoActio n
AdveiHseme n \^ Learning program mi ng or CP/M
_Humour _Gamemaps Special otters News
Co nnpetstiQn s _^Rewi5ws o J add-OfiS
Other. „.... „„.™ ,
10. On average how many other paopla r»ad your copy of
Am »irad Aclion?
None 1-2 3-4 5-6 7 or mo 'p
11. Below ift a lislot topics. Plea si? place a tickrta^cl lo thosayou
would be very interested io read about, a croftaby 1ho$ayou
would not baatall inier^sled in.
_P/ogramming in Bas ic Ntaehino code Pascal
Logo CP^M ^ Sohware house prolih^
Computer book reviews ,Educal3onaJ software
_Bushe5s oomputirig
I
12. Which ma9a:tine sec I ions would you tikieglvan more space
and whVch t»s (y ou musl piece the sarne number of 1ick« in ihe
Xasi' column as in Ihe 'More'!]?
More Us^ Same
Amsoena (news)
Fte Action (lexers)
Serious Sortwaro (reviewsj ^^
PlU9'ins(rcvtcwa of add-ons) ^_
Type-ins {program I isdngs)
Action TesMs^n^^^'^^^s^^) . , *^
Advonlure
C h0a I Mode (pla j^i ng lips, Pohe^) ^ ^^
HiSc^ce _ __ _
MailOrder/Spedalofters __
, CompoiilionB
13^ PI esse number the following magazinea in order of
preference (your fa vourile should be number 1 ^^ ignore any
you are not fam jliar with).
Amstrad Computer User
^Compuang with the Ar^sif ad
Perso^aj Com puler World
ComouEcr and Video Games
Your Compuler
_^Amt«
_ Amslrad Acliori
14. How could Amstrad Action bo improved?
'■ + l«l1-i<4>1^->>'--->>''>><>->i>>>^>>'ri.i.i.nii.-...n..'«ri.Til-nTr!r.-.i-i--4-l--i-->-rTi + -iPil^l4IF|l44li>l
... .. .■!.. ..J ■ ..■h4.-.>ilMH*n-.B-.ftliil«lMihl#l-im!> ■■ ■■ ■'■•■■ >'■ .■••■.■^. .. ."k. .. . • ..#. ..'. ... . ■
102 JULY 1986 JIMSTRAD ACTION
Highway
roiTN T gxJ^-i
»
HISTORY recalls the epic 'Highway Encounter
The ottempted domination of Earth by the
dreaded Alien aggressor was foiled by the power
of the Vortons,
NOW the sequel is bunched.
Alien Highwoy' Where Vorton meels Alien,
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